Borderline
by Raivis-Latvijas
Summary: Andelko Begovich, an ER trauma nurse, has it rough. Little sleep, lots of work, and only a few people he can rely on. When a man, Novak Novkovic, comes into his life via a set-up date from a friend, will he survive the stress? Eventual SerbiaxCroatia.
1. Chapter 1

**A/n: **Yes, I'm starting yet another multi-chapter story. I just have way too many ideas and inspirations; I simply have to write them out before I forget them.

This story, "Borderline", is centered on the ER of a hospital in a big city. Obviously, like in most of my stories, there will be pairings and OCs. It's rated T for language, gore (it's a hospital after all), and violence. Average story from yours truly, yes?

Anyways, let's get started.

**Xxx**

It was a normal day at the Saint Vargas' Hospital ER.

Some minor injuries or people simply freaking out over nothing, and a few major cases that required some sort of surgery or intense medical care.

Andelko Begovich, a twenty-nine year old ER Trauma Nurse with three years of experience to his name, was leaning on the desk that belonged to his receptionist friend, chatting during a break. The receptionist was thirty year old Pavla Prockofijev, a long brown-haired woman who shared similar experience to Andelko, but had only started work at Saint Vargas' a few months ago.

"Any good work today, Andy?" Pavla questioned the black-haired nurse in front of her.

"Best we've gotten so far was a high school student with a broken arm." Andelko replied, scratching a bit at his beard.

"Slow day then, huh?" Pavla assumed before letting out a yawn. Tiredness was a plague that afflicted most in the ER; working so many hours was grueling. Andelko was working a slow twelve hours today, and he was only in the third hour of working. The pay was good though; just over 45 dollars an hour was worth the lack of sleep.

"No kidding… I've got nine more hours of this; maybe thing will pick up and keep us awake today." Andelko glanced to his watch and sighed.

"I better get back to work." He said. "I'll talk to you during lunch."

Andelko meandered down the many halls of the hospital, sticking his hands in the pockets of his black scrubs. He checked on a few patients, making sure things were going fine with the machines and such, before heading back out of the room.

When he saw a fellow Trauma Nurse jogging down the hall, he turned around.

"What's going on?" He asked. The woman was Elizibeta Hedervary, a twenty-six year old who was fresh out of college, but had proven to be extremely reliable when it came to the ER.

"We've got our first big one of the day, Begovich. Severe polytrauma to a male college student." Elizibeta explained as Andelko hurried along beside her to the entrance of the ER. As the male patient was brought in, the paramedics wheeled the gurney down the hall. Andelko could now see the extent of the injuries on the student.

The young man, already unconscious, was bleeding profusely from the head, neck, and chest. There were numerous cuts along his body, along with shards of glass and what looked to be small pieces of metal.

"What happened here?" Andelko questioned the paramedics.

"Motorcycle crash. He was hit by a car that ran a red light going a high rate of speed. From what we know, he hit the windshield of the car, and then rolled off onto the ground, ending up on top of his destroyed motorcycle. He wasn't wearing a helmet." One paramedic explained.

"Alright, I need him stabilized and in the trauma center immediately. Once he's stabilized, I need the okay for x-rays of his torso and head. Once that's done, we'll operate to fix any internal injuries and seal up the cuts that we can. Get the trauma team all down here; I know I'm not able to save him alone." Andelko ordered; he loved his job. Saving lives was something he enjoyed. He had lost some patients to their injuries, sure, but whenever he could save a life, it brought him so much pride. This college student was in danger of losing his life and Andelko knew it was his job to get him stabilized and off the path of dying so soon.

Once they had the patient in the trauma center, Andelko quickly washed his hands then slipped on a pair of latex gloves, along with a mask over his mouth and nose. The main trauma team consisted of Andelko, Elizibeta, and three others. The most experienced and professional of them was the thirty-eight year old Sadik Adnan, a Turkish man who had studied the wonder that was the medical field for a long time. He and Andelko, though very disliking of eachother, worked together as leaders on the trauma team. The next on the team was twenty-seven year old Apostol Svetozar, a well-trusted Bulgarian man with a heart that revolved around the medical field, even though he had only spent a year as an officially licensed nurse. Finally, they had their ever-silent Bosnian, twenty-eight year old Zlatko Pilav.

The five of them, though a rather young group, had proven to be one of the most reliable trauma teams ever constructed in the hospital.

"Alright, let's get the patient's clothes removed so we can see what we're dealing with here. Apostol, you have his information, correct?" Sadik asked, starting to cut away the bloodied fabric of the patient's clothes with scissors.

"Yes, I do. This is twenty-three year old Jamie Supple, an Auto Maintenance student at a local university. He has no medical issues, and has never been in this hospital before. It'll be safe to use whatever we can since he won't have any allergic reactions." Apostol explained as he read over a clipboard.

"He's losing a lot of blood; have blood transfusion equipment on the ready in case we need it. What blood type are we dealing with?" Andelko questioned.

"Uh…" Apostol looked over the papers for a moment. "Wow... AB positive. We'll be able to give him what blood we have handy."

"Apostol, make sure we have AB blood on the ready. If we don't, then we'll use something else. The right type of blood-"

"Is what is best for the patient; I know." Apostol interrupted Andelko.

"Well, stop stalling and make sure we have enough on hand. Bring what you can; we don't know how much we'll need." Sadik said. Apostol hurried to go check on the blood supply. Meanwhile, Andelko, Sadik, and Zlatko were working hard on stopping the bleeding from the wounds on the patient, while Elizibeta was hooking him up to machinery so they knew what his vitals were like. Elizibeta studied the screens of the machines carefully.

"His vitals are dangerously low, guys. We need to get this bleeding stopped and fast, or else we may be in danger of losing him." She warned.

"We're working on it, Liz." Sadik replied.

The medical procedures to stop the blood were going roughly, but they were now figuring out what the major wounds on the patient's body were. There was a large laceration on the left side of his neck that was proving hard for the doctors to seal. There was also a gash on the side of the college student's head that they were working on, as well as numerous cuts on the torso of the young man.

"Liz, check with radiology and make sure that they have a machine on the ready so that when we get this man stabilized we can figure out if there is anything wrong internally." Andelko requested. Elizibeta nodded and headed out of the center to the radiology center nearby.

"Zlatko, keep an eye on his vitals." Sadik ordered. Zlatko glanced up at a few of the machines, working quickly to help the patient.

"His vitals a dropping slowly; we need that blood transfusion as soon as Apostol gets back. If he doesn't get back here soon I'm afraid this patient will bleed to death." Zlatko explained.

"Shit… Apostol, come on… we need that blood…" Sadik muttered, frustrated with how much time it was taking Apostol to get the blood they needed.

A few moments later, Apostol hurried into the room with a cart which carried the necessary supplies for a blood transfusion. Here were at least fifteen packets of AB blood in the cart.

"Will this be enough?" The Bulgarian asked.

"Yes, now shut up and get this man the blood he needs." Andelko ordered. Apostol nodded and started hooking the patient up with intravenous blood. Zlatko glanced up at the machines monitoring the man's vitals.

"Still dropping." He said.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it…. Come on… We're doing all we can here…" Sadik was growing increasingly frustrated; he didn't want to lose any patients today.

"We'll be moving into Class IV Hemorrhaging soon at this rate." Andelko informed.

"Apostol, how's that blood coming?" Sadik asked.

"It's coming, it's coming. I'm trying my hardest to give him as much blood as possible, but it's not working." Apostol explained, hastily switching empty packets of blood out for fresh ones.

"God damn it, he isn't going to last much longer… Where's Liz?" Andelko questioned.

"Right here, Andelko." Elizibeta returned to the room and immediately got back to work, trying to do what she could to prevent heir patient from dying.

"What was the word from radiology?" Sadik asked.

"They've reserved an area for our patient once we have him stabilized." She responded.

But the patient didn't stabilized.

"Vitals just took a steep drop; he's facing exsanguination now…" Elizibeta informed. The doctors did all they could, but it was no use. When a prolonged beep was heard from one of the machines, they rushed to get the defibrillator. They tried their best, shocking the patient and trying to get him back, but it was no use.

"… We've done all we can. Apostol, Liz, you stay and clean up around here…" Sadik said, dropping his tools on a metal tray then removing his latex gloves and mask. Andelko and Zlatko followed in his steps, removing their gloves and masks as well.

They walked out of the room somberly, though frustration lingered on all of them. Sadik sighed and leaned against the wall outside of the trauma center, shaking his head.

"So much blood loss... We can only do so much…" He muttered.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Adnan. You did all you could. We all did." Andelko said.

Sadik shook his head and walked off down the hall, most likely to go and be on his own for a while. Losing a patient was always hard, especially when they were so young. Losing someone in their early twenties was difficult to handle; they died far too young.

"I'll go write out the papers for the morgue. Will you contact the family? They're in the lobby now." Zlatko asked Andelko.

"Yeah, I'll take care of the family matters…" This was the worst part of the job; delivering news that no one wanted to hear.

Andelko sighed a bit and went out to the lobby where the family was. There were both parents, what looked to be a wife, and a young child.

"Are you the family of Jamie Supple?" He asked. The family turned to him.

"Yes, is he alright?" The mother, Andelko assumed, said. Andelko sighed slightly.

"We did all we could for Jamie. But we couldn't save him… I'm sorry." He apologized. The family broke out into tears and sobs; the mother and wife especially. The child was confused from the looks of it, and the father seemed to be holding back his emotions for the sake of the others.

"The morgue will contact you once the body is ready to be sent to the funeral home… Again, I'm sorry for your loss…" With that, Andelko left the area, taking a deep breath then letting it out slowly. These were the times when his brain begged him for a cigarette, but he had kicked that addiction of his to the curb two years ago.

He tried to shake off the loss of the patient and continue about his work, checking on patients and making sure everything was in order. When lunch came around, he exited the hospital with Pavla, the receptionist from earlier. They walked down the sidewalk, heading to a nearby café.

"I heard you guys lost a college student earlier today." Pavla said. Andelko nodded.

"Yep… He bled out. We couldn't revive him once his heart stopped." He explained.

"So sad… Who told the family?"

"Zlatko kind of dumped that responsibility on me. He went and filled out the paperwork, Sadik went off to do God knows what, and Liz and Apostol were in charge of the body… Not a good day for me. It didn't seem too bad at first, but when Liz hooked him up and checked his vitals, things went downhill from there… Blood transfusions didn't work and there were too many wounds for the five of us to work on…"

"Don't let it get to you too much. You have an appetite at all?" Pavla asked.

"Not really…" Andelko replied.

"You know you should eat something, Andelko. You've still got five more hours of work to do. You can't work on an empty stomach."

"I know, I know… I'll just buy a bagel or something…"

"Good."

As the two entered the café, clad in their scrubs with their identification badges pinned to their shirts, people stared. The nurses and doctors at the hospital often came through the café, but it was still an odd scene to see.

Once the two had gotten their meals, Andelko sticking to a rather bland plain bagel, they sat at a nearby table and began to eat.

"I don't know what's worse, losing a patient or you forcing me to eat something…" Andelko commented.

"Oh stop complaining, Andy. You know you'd do the same for me." Pavla responded.

"Yeah. I would." The other hospital employee said, taking a bite of his bagel. He stared out the window, mind drifting off into thoughts, mainly about his patient, but also about something else that was going on.

Elizibeta, being the matchmaker she was, had set Andelko up for a date with a Serbian friend of hers. Andelko knew what Elizibeta had told him; Novak Novkovic was the guy's name, and he was a twenty-five year old former soldier. Novak had suffered a devastating leg injury when working on some military machinery, and had his right leg from the knee down amputated. Novak had accommodated a prosthetic limb, and lived a normal life, working as a pianist.

"Andy? Are you listening?" Pavla's voice caught Andelko's attention, bringing his mind back to reality.

"Huh? No, sorry, I wasn't…" He muttered.

"What're you thinking about? You're normally a good listener." Pavla tilted her head to one side, wanting to know why Andelko was so distant.

"I've got a date tomorrow… Elizibeta set me up with a guy I don't even know." Andelko explained.

"Well, do you know his name or anything?"

"I just know he's a Serbian named Novak Novkovic… Former soldier turned pianist… Why Elizibeta would set me up with a Serbian, I have no clue. Croatians and Serbians naturally do not get along."

"Well, you can't go basing this man off of his nationality, Andelko. I mean, I'm not a big fan of Serbians either, but maybe this Novak guy isn't half bad. You'll have to wait and see."

"Ugh… I have too much going on in my life to deal with a relationship with anyone…"

"Oh please, Andelko. Everyone knows that you're like the loneliest man on the planet. Face it; you need someone."

"Why does everyone assume that I need things? Last year Elizibeta forced me to take a vacation because she thought I needed a break from work."

"How much were you working?"

"I worked four days a week, all twelve hour shifts, for a month straight…"

"Yeah, you straight overworked yourself then. You know your limit is two or three twelve hour shifts a week."

"So what if I overwork myself? The hospital is getting understaffed anyways. Why do you think we have so many people working overtime? Sadik is at work nearly every day now."

"Well that's just a Sadik thing. He likes his job."

"And you're saying I don't like mine?"

"I'm not saying that at all. Now my job, that's something you can openly say you don't like. I'm dying to get back into working seriously. Being a receptionist is so boring."

"That's what you get for quitting your job at whatever hospital you were working at before you came here."

"Mercy Hospital? Yeah, fuck that place. The management was all screwed up. I'd much rather work here at Saint V's with you. Much more stable environment."

"I'll put in a good word with Antonio. Maybe he'll give you a raise and put you back to actual nursing."

"Or maybe I can replace Apostol on your trauma team. I heard he got chewed out by Doctor O'Keeffe earlier this morning."

"Really? For what?"

"Something about wasting too much time on the job."

"Apostol… Well, I can't say he's a bad guy. He's got his heart in the right place, but he does tend to spend quite a bit of time doing things… He took a while getting the blood transfusion packets the team needed today."

"You don't think that's the reason the patient died, right?"

"No, of course not. Some people can't be saved, and this happened to be one of those people today… Apostol is a good man, and I have to give him credit, but… He just needs to hurry when he does things, you know?"

"Yeah. I know even as a receptionist I try to make things quick. And you as a trauma nurse have to make very quick decisions. If Apostol is going to keep his position on the trauma team he better speed things up."

"Yeah…" Andelko muttered. He glanced to his watch. "We should probably start heading back to the hospital." He said, standing. Pavla nodded and stood as well, following Andelko out of the café.

When they arrived at the hospital, they went straight back to work. Andelko went about his duties, trying not to think of the patient he had lost during the day.

After five more grueling hours, Andelko finally finished his shift and was able to head home. He went to the parking garage beneath the hospital and went to his car, raising an eyebrow at the envelope under one of the windshield wipers. He glanced around a bit before taking the envelope, looking at it.

On the front in pen was simply Andelko's name. Andelko recognized the handwriting; it was Sadik Adnan's. Andelko opened up the envelope, sliding a letter out of it. He began to read it silently.

'_Dear Andelko,_

_Thank you for your work and cooperation when we were operating on Jamie Supple today. You know, every day you're getting better. You're becoming very professional. I look forward to working with you for the next couple of years, even though you and I typically do not get along._

_Signed,_

_Sadik Adnan'_

Andelko shrugged a bit, opening the door of his car and tossing the letter aside on the passenger seat. He honestly didn't care much about what Sadik thought; he just knew the man was his coworker and that he had no choice but to work with him.

Andelko had three years of experience in the medical field; of course he would at least act professional about his job. Being a trauma nurse was no joke; people's lives were regularly put in his hands and he was supposed to keep them from losing the lives they held so dear.

Upon arriving at his home, he walked in the front door and set his keys on the island table. He glanced to the fridge at his left and sighed; he still didn't have much of an appetite. He yawned a bit and headed to his bedroom, where he kicked off his shoes and removed his shirt, tossing it aside in a pile of dirt laundry. He walked to his bathroom, looking himself over in the mirror.

There were dark circles surrounding his brown eyes, mainly from the lack of sleep he'd been getting. Thankfully, he only had a six hour shift tomorrow and was going to be able to suffer through it. It was a morning shift too, so there wouldn't be a lot of business around the ER.

He ran a hand through his short black hair, sighing heavily. Maybe Pavla was right. Maybe he did overwork himself.

He shut off the bathroom light then exited, flopping down on his bed. He closed his eyes for a moment, wondering if he should sleep without doing anything around the house, but then he remembered that pile of dirty laundry sitting at the side of his bedroom. He sat up and opened his eyes, standing and heading over to the pile of clothing. He knew he should probably get the laundry at least done before it accumulated and he became too lazy to do it.

He grabbed a laundry basket from the bathroom and tossed the dirtied articles in it, half carrying, half dragging the load to the washer and dryer down the hall. While he tossed some of the clothing into the washer, his cell phone rang from his pants pocket. He retrieved the device and held it up against his ear with his shoulder while he used his hands to empty the pockets of a pair of jeans he was holding.

"Hello?"

"_Hey Andy, it's Elizibeta."_

"Hey. What's up?"

"_Not much. What're you up to?"_

"I am doing the laundry right now."

"_Hah, what a coincidence. I am too. We're laundry buddies."_

"Laundry buddies, hm? Sometimes I wonder what goes through your head, Liz."

Elizibeta laughed. _"So are you still set for that date tomorrow? I know Novak is dying to meet you."_

"Ugh, don't remind me… I'll be lucky if I survive the six hours of work I have tomorrow morning, let alone go on a date with him afterwards."

"_Oh come on, Andelko. He's a nice guy, and you are too. I know you and Novak will get along great."_

Andelko scoffed slightly. "I don't know. Did you really have to set me up with a Serbian of all people?"

"_There's been odder couples in the world, I'm sure."_

"What makes you think things will work out between me and this guy?"

"_I just know. You know what; I'll make you a bet. If you and Novak get along, you owe me fifty bucks. If not, I owe you fifty."_

"I don't do deals, Liz."

"_Come on, just this once? It's a legit bet, you know."_

"Legit? Liz, you've spent way too much time around the med students recently, haven't you?"

"_Oh shush. Is it a deal or not, Andy?"_

"Ugh… Fine, I'll take the bet."

"_Great! I'll be waiting for my fifty bucks."_

"Don't be so confident; you have to remember that he and I are two very different people."

"_But you're similar in so many ways!"_

"Oh, you think so?"

"_Hell yeah, I do." _Elizibeta giggled a bit. _"And seeing two muscly men like you and Novak together will definitely be worth it."_

"Oh God, you and your fantasies, Liz…"

"_What? You can't deny that you're one of the more attractive men around. Novak is the same way."_

"I thank you for the compliment, but seriously, Liz. I wouldn't get ahead of yourself with this Novak guy and me… So not looking forward to tomorrow."

"_Aw, cheer up laundry buddy. It could turn out good for you!"_

"Hardly."

"_You doubt things too much, Andy."_

"Eh. I don't think so."

"_You doubt that you doubt things much. That's doubting, and I doubt that's a good thing."_

"Your usage of the word 'doubt' is giving me a headache, Liz."

"_It's a headache you deserve."_

"What did I do?"

"_Doubt."_

"Ugh… Liz, you're going to be the death of me one of these days."

"_I sure hope not. Then I'll lose the man I get to tease all day."_

"Can I get back to doing my laundry in peace, please?"

"_Yes, you can. I'll talk to you tomorrow, Andy."_

"Bye, Liz."

Andelko hung up the phone and sighed, putting it back in his pocket then resuming tossing his dirty clothes in the washer.

Once the washer was running, he meandered over to his living room, where he sat on the couch and flipped on the television.

He still wasn't looking forward to tomorrow.


	2. Chapter 2

Getting up in the morning was the hardest thing for Andelko to do. If it wasn't for that incessant beeping of his alarm clock, he would have remained in bed.

But alas, he had no choice but to get up.

He crawled out of bed slowly, pressing the snooze button on his alarm then stretching his tired limbs. He made his way to the bathroom, where he removed his boxers and climbed in the shower. Taking a shower in the morning always woke him up.

Once he was finished with his shower, he got out and grabbed a towel, drying himself off without much of a hassle. His hair dried quickly, which he took as far more of a blessing than a burden.

He exited the bathroom and went to his clothes dresser, slipping on a pair of boxers and digging around for some scrubs. Once he found a pair, he tossed them on. It was a pair of blue scrubs that had a Croatian flag sewn into the collar; it had been a gift from Elizibeta two years ago.

He never understood that woman. Elizibeta had befriended Andelko when she started shadowing one of the doctors at the hospital during her college days. Before Andelko knew it, he had a Hungarian woman on his trauma team, and a never-ending amount of teasing directed towards him. Andelko sighed; she teased him about every little thing, especially the fact that he'd never been in a very official relationship.

Yes, it's true; over twenty-nine years Andelko had never had a worthwhile relationship. He had always been so focused on studies and work; there was just no time for him to love someone. Elizibeta seemed determined to get Andelko with somebody, but did she really think that any of her decisions were helping him? Setting Andelko up with a Serbian was about one of the most gutsy moves she'd ever made.

As Andelko went about his morning routine, brushing his teeth and trying to find a pair of socks that matched, he couldn't stop thinking about the date he had. Elizibeta had told him to meet her and Novak at the café around four o'clock. Oh, how he dreaded that time now. But, there was no escaping it. Elizibeta would hunt him down and make him regret it if he tried to skip the date.

He slipped on his watch and glanced at the time; 5:45AM. He had to be at work by 6:00AM.

He grabbed his shoes from beside his bed and slipped them on before meandering out to his kitchen, grabbing his car keys off the island table. He then exited his home, hopping into his car. He put the key into the ignition and started up the vehicle, not caring much about the unusual noises coming from the engine. He would deal with it later.

When he arrived in the hospital parking garage around 5:55, he grabbed his identification badge and clipped it to his shirt before heading to the elevator. To his delight, Pavla had arrived at about the same time he had. She joined him in the elevator, leaning against the wall as Andelko hit the lobby button.

"Morning Andelko." She greeted as she clipped her identification badge on her shirt.

"Morning Pavla… How's your morning going so far?" Andelko asked in attempt to make conversation as the elevator slowly made its way up.

"It's going. Woke up and Ana was lying on my chest. Damn cat wouldn't move." Pavla responded, laughing slightly. Andelko recalled the woman's chubby tabby cat Ana; Pavla loved the animal to death.

Andelko chuckled. "Maybe Ana's trying to tell you something."

"Like what? That I need to be squished?" Pavla questioned. The two in the elevator laughed a bit before silence came upon them.

The elevator doors opened, and they had to go their separate ways to clock in for work. Andelko sighed a bit when he arrived in the ER; he wondered if they would get any serious injuries like the one the trauma team had dealt with the previous day.

He spotted Elizibeta hanging out at her desk; since she was the only person around that he knew, he supposed he would talk to her despite the fact that he knew he was going to get an earful about that Serbian guy she set him up with.

He approached the Hungarian woman and sighed.

"Good morning, Liz." He greeted. The other trauma nurse looked up and grinned.

"Morning Andy!" She replied. Andelko pondered how Elizibeta could be so lively at six in the morning.

"I don't know how you can stand working so early…" The Croatian man grumbled before yawning.

"It's called coffee. You should try it sometime." Elizibeta remarked, laughing a bit. Andelko half-chuckled, half-scoffed, shaking his head.

"I'm not a coffee drinker."

"And neither is Novak."

"Must you remind me of him every ten seconds, Liz?"

"Yep."

"Ugh… You and Pavla both give me migraines. You much more than Pavla though."

"Oh shush. You know we're your favorite ladies."

"You're the only women I know that aren't my mother."

"Exactly."

Andelko knew there was no victory in store for him while speaking with Elizibeta. She always figured out some way to counteract whatever he said, and it usually ended up with a mildly confused Croatian and a satisfied Hungarian.

"Anyways… What do you think today is going to be like work-wise?" Andelko asked, changing the subject of the conversation.

"I don't think we'll get another patient like we did yesterday. It'd be a tragedy to lose two patients in two days." Elizibeta answered. Andelko nodded.

"It would be… I've only lost two patients in two days last year. They had both been in a car wreck; one survived a bit longer than the other, but inevitably died…"

"I heard about that." Elizibeta said. She then looked to the screen of her computer.

"Looks like you're needed, Andelko. They've got a man with severe chemical burns on his way." She informed.

"Chemical burns, hm? Haven't had a burn victim in a while, let alone chemical burns… I'll talk to you later, Liz." Andelko walked off down the hall and went down to the lobby, arriving just as the patient was wheeled in. It was a man who looked to be in his twenties, with visible burns on the left side of his face and neck, along with some n his chest and left arm. Andelko could tell that the man was trying hard not to scream; chemical burns hurt, especially when they were on such tender areas as the neck and face.

"Alright, what happened here?" He asked the paramedics wheeling the man in.

"He was working in a factory; one of his coworkers was cleaning the machinery with a strong sodium hydroxide solution. Our patient here wasn't paying attention and ran into the coworker who was cleaning, knocking the small bucket of the solution out of the other man's hand and spilling the solution over him. The coworker received no burns since he was wearing protective gear, but our patient was not. The burns are severe, and may require surgical debridement." One of the paramedics explained.

"Alright. Let's get him to the trauma center; from there we'll do further evaluation and make sure surgical debridement is required. If it's not then we'll clean the burns the best we can and then dress them properly." Andelko replied.

Once the patient was in the trauma center, Andelko was joined by Sadik and Apostol. All three put on latex gloves and masks, protocol for any person working in a hospital.

"Alright Andelko, let's get him anesthesiated so we can evaluate his burns." Sadik said. Andelko nodded, going through the correct procedure for anesthesia and soon finding the patient unconscious and able to be evaluated properly.

"Apostol, you have his information, correct?" Andelko asked.

"Yeah. This is Nikodemos Antonov, twenty-four year old factory worker. He's a college student as well; he works at the factory to try to pay off his tuition from my guess. No existing medical issues and no previous visits to the hospital." Apostol read off a clipboard.

"Alright… Apostol, let's get his shirt removed as carefully as possible. We don't want to risk aggravating things worse. Andelko, hook him up so we can make sure his vitals are stable." Sadik ordered. Andelko went about hooking the burn victim up to a machine, soon seeing that the man's vitals were stable.

"Nothing out of the ordinary. We're clear to do whatever is needed." He informed as Sadik and Apostol finished removing the clothing article from the torso of the patient. Sadik inspected the burns carefully.

"Looks like the worst ones are on his neck; doesn't seem like we'll need debridement. We'll just clean the burns the best we can and then dress them properly." He said. The three soon got to work, carefully cleaning the chemical burns. After about a half hour, they had finished cleaning the wounds and were dressing them when a second call came in for another trauma. Elizibeta entered the room.

"Which one of you guys can come work on a man with a broken leg?" She asked.

"I'll handle it." Sadik replied. "You two can finish up here then have him transported to recovery." With that, the Turkish man left, followed by Elizibeta. Apostol and Andelko were now the only two in the trauma center.

"He'll be waking up from the anesthetics soon. Let's finish this up quick." Andelko stated. Apostol nodded. Soon the patient was on his way to recovery. When Andelko and Apostol went their separate ways, Andelko was approached by the man in charge of the ER, Antonio Carriedo.

"Good morning, Andelko." The cheerful Spaniard greeted, smiling. Andelko nodded to the other man, smiling only slightly. He was tired; who could blame him?

"Morning Antonio. Having a good day so far?" He asked.

"Si, I am. And yourself?" Antonio replied.

"It's been decent. I'm surprised that we've gotten two people in the ER with injuries this early in the morning."

"It's just one of those days. We're going to be short-staffed today too; I was wondering if you would mind working an extra few hours today. Until four; would that be okay with you?"

"You want me to work a ten hour shift today after I just worked a twelve hour shift yesterday?" Andelko asked, feeling slightly upset at the fact that he was working so much. Not to mention, the time that Andelko would end his shift, if he accepted to work the extra hours, conflicted with the date Elizibeta had scheduled for him. That was, unless Novak wanted to deal with an overworked, scrub-clad Croatian.

"I promise you, your paycheck will be worthwhile if you take these hours. We've had three nurses call in sick today, and the ones that haven't called in aren't coming in until four."

Andelko sighed out of frustration, crossing his arms. "You know what? Fine. I'll take the hours. The money I'll get out of it will be worth the fatigue."

"Thank you, Andelko. I appreciate it." With that, Antonio walked off. Andelko scratched the back of his head, letting out another sigh. Ten hours stuck in the hospital, working his ass off. Great.

After about two hours of work, things had slowed down in the ER and Andelko got some time to relax. He meandered over to Elizibeta's desk, pulling a chair from nearby and planting himself next to the woman.

"Rough day?" Elizibeta asked.

"I'm tired as hell, and I took more hours… I know I'm going to be regretting this." Andelko responded.

"You took extra hours?"

"I'll be here until four."

"Well, that doesn't conflict too badly with anything. You'll just have to come straight from here to the café to meet Novak."

"Great... " Andelko muttered sarcastically.

"Try to at least be nice when you meet him. I know ten hours is going to kill you, especially after you worked those twelve yesterday, but he's looking forward to meeting you. I mean, even if you two don't get into a relationship, you could be friends at best."

Andelko yawned before replying. "I am so fucking tired… I can hardly find it in myself to keep talking to you about this Novak guy."

"I'm telling you, Andy. Coffee is where it's at if you want to stay awake."

"Did I not tell you before that I don't drink coffee?"

"How in the name of everything holy did you manage to stay awake in college without coffee?"

"It's called getting rid of a social life in order to maintain sleep and grades…"

"You still do that today, except the grades have turned into work. And even then, you're not getting enough sleep."

"Who is? Not anyone I know, that's for sure."

"No kidding. You better get back to work, Andy. Check on patients or something. I've got work to do myself."

"I'll talk to you later, Liz…" Andelko said, standing and walking off.

Time passed incredibly slowly, but before Andelko knew it, four o'clock came around and he was able to leave. Thankfully he had been able to wake up over the course of the day, and his tiredness wasn't quite as noticeable as it had been in previous hours.

As he went down to the parking garage and got in his car, he sighed heavily. Working ten hours wasn't the hardest part of his day; heading over to the café for a set up date with a man he barely knew was.

Alas, there was no escaping such a thing. As he drove, he found himself pondering; maybe it was the tiredness taking a hold of his mind, but he actually wondered if things would turn out positively between he and Novak.

When he pulled up to the café, he spotted Elizibeta standing by her car with a blonde-haired man, assumingly Novak. He parked his car in an open parking space and got out, looking to the two, who approached him. Novak had a slower walking pace, most likely due to his prosthetic limb.

Elizibeta smiled at Andelko. "Well Andy, meet Novak Novkovic. Novak, meet Andelko Begovich." She said. Andelko nodded towards the Serbian a bit.

"How are you?" He asked the other man.

"I'm doing alright. And yourself?" Novak replied, smiling slightly. The man had a strong upper-body from the looks of it, probably from being a soldier in the past. He also had lightly curled hair, along with sideburns and stubble along his face. Andelko admittedly liked the way Novak looked.

"I'm alright. Tired though; just got done working a ten hour shift." Andelko responded.

"Liz told me that you were working quite a bit recently."

"I'll let you two head on in and talk some more. See you later." Elizibeta walked off to her car, leaving Novak and Andelko.

"Well, shall we head in?" Andelko asked. The other man nodded, and the two went into the café. Andelko slowed down his pace slightly for the Serbian; he felt kind of bad for Novak. A prosthetic limb more often than not was painful to deal with, and cost quite a bit.

The two found their way to an open table and sat down.

"Would you like me to get you something to drink at all?" Andelko asked; being polite would make things a bit easier, he supposed.

"Just get me a regular coffee, if you don't mind." Novak replied. Andelko nodded and headed to the counter, paying for a coffee and then returning to Novak with the drink. He set it in front of the Serb before sitting back down.

"Thank you, Andelko." Novak said.

"It's not a problem." Andelko responded. Novak took a sip of the coffee then let out a small sigh.

"So you work with Elizibeta?" He asked.

"Yeah… She's a good friend. I've known her for a couple of years now."

"She's told me that you two went to the same university, correct?"

Andelko nodded. "We did. I graduated three years ago though; she graduated a few months back."

"You two work in the same part of the hospital, right?"

"We're actually on the same trauma team in the ER. Some days we work separately, but when there's a big operation that needs done, she and I, along with three others are in a group working together."

"That's interesting. I take it you're rather knowledgeable of medical things since you work in the ER."

"You could say so. I spent most of my time in college studying, sleeping, and going to class. I had practically no social life." Andelko said, chuckling slightly.

"Sounds like me before I joined the military back in Serbia."

"Elizibeta told me that you were a soldier. Now that I see you, you seem to have the physique of one."

"I've kept myself fit. I was only in the military two years before the accident in which I lost my leg."

"How long have you had the prosthetic?"

"I've had the prosthetic for about… four years now? I've grown accustomed to it."

"Must have cost a lot initially."

"It did, but I'm lucky enough to have a rich uncle… He paid for most of the operation."

"I see. What kind of prosthetic do you have?"

"An osseointegrated one. Cost a whole hell of a lot, and it took a while to get used to, but I prefer it over any other. I can't run or walk very fast because of how it's attached to the bone, but unlike some prosthetics, this kind isn't painful and I can wear it for extended periods of time."

"Ah. So how did you transfer from being a soldier to being a pianist?"

"Well, I've always liked music, especially piano compositions. Before I joined the military, I worked part time at a piano shop in Belgrade. I learned quite a bit from the guy who owned it; he was an Austrian guy… When I was injured and couldn't be in the military anymore, what he taught me came back to use. I learned how to use the pedals on the piano with just my left foot until I got my prosthesis, and then I practiced with my right… I moved to the states two years ago, and so far, my pianist career has been a decent source of income. I think a lot of it is just people feeling bad because of my leg, but my music is pretty good from the feedback I've received."

"You write your own compositions?"

"Yes, I do. I've actually got a cd in stores… I sing too. I don't think my voice is quite so good, especially since my accent can be overbearing at times, but I have a few songs in Serbian that people here surprisingly like. I played at a club the other week, and someone from the crowd personally asked me to play one of the songs I wrote that was on my cd."

"Care to tell me what that song is?" Andelko actually found himself very interested in this man's career.

"Well, the title of the song is "Praznina" which translates to-"

""Gap", doesn't it?" Andelko cut the man off, trying to recall the language that had been his native tongue. Admittedly, he had forgotten most of his Croatian.

"Yes, exactly. "Gap"." Novak said with a smile. "… Ah, it has such an overused meaning to it. You probably wouldn't care much."

"Oh no, do tell. I want to know."

"Well… It's about finding some way to conquer a challenge your life. When I wrote "Praznina", I had just lost my leg and was relearning how to go about my daily life. The gap for me was trying to get around with only one leg. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, it does. What're some of the lyrics?"

"Uh… The chorus, in English is 'Wherever you may be, and whatever you may find, you need not turn back… The world hasn't stopped, and neither will you, you need not give in to your gap.'… I know, it sounds stupid."

Andelko shook his head. "No, it doesn't. That actually sends out a very good message for anyone going through a struggle. I like it."

"Thanks…"

"You're welcome… So, where in Serbia are you from?" Andelko switched the topic of the conversation.

"I was born in Veliko Gradište, but I only resided there for a year before my family moved to central Belgrade. What about you? You're from Croatia, correct?"

"Yeah… I was born in Vukovar. Lived there until I was nine, then I came here to the United States. I'm ashamed to say that I've forgotten most of the Croatian I knew, and can't remember all that much about Vukovar."

"Sooner or later I'll have forgotten Serbian. Being here in America, people just don't speak Serbo-Croatian languages. English and Spanish are about the only things I hear."

"I had to deal with a patient who spoke fluent Spanish the other day. My boss actually had to come in from his break and try to communicate. I don't know any Spanish for the life of me."

"Your boss speaks Spanish?"

"He's from Madrid. It's odd; at the hospital we have so many ethnicities. I'm Croatian, Liz is Hungarian… My friend Pavla is from Slovenia, and there's also Turk and a Bulgarian. Oh, and there's a Bosnian too."

"Really? So there are a few people here in town from the Balkan region then."

"Yeah, there are. Sadly, the only one I know that still speaks his native tongue is about as quiet as can be. He's from Bosnia. Had a rough childhood or something; doesn't talk too much. He's with my trauma team."

"Ah, really? That's interesting."

"I suppose so." Andelko said before yawning.

"You seem awfully tired, Andelko." Novak commented.

"That's what a ten hour shift will do to a man… Pays well though, so the fatigue is worth it."

"How much do you get paid on an average work day?"

"Well, for an average six hour work day… I get paid around forty-five dollars an hour. Add on all these extra hours I work, and that nearly doubles. So much overtime… It pays off in the end. I always get a good paycheck."

"So for a ten hour shift you would get paid somewhere around four-hundred fifty dollars, correct?"

"Yeah… But I also get bonuses added on to the main salary, which ends up around five twenty-five."

"So you make some pretty good money with all the work you do."

"Yeah. I find it worth the fatigue. Sadly, Liz doesn't think so." Andelko said with a chuckle.

"That Liz. Always thinking of others."

"Or for others."

"Yeah, that's more like it." Novak replied, laughing a bit. "Ah… I should probably let you get on home since you're rather tired."

"Yeah… Thanks. You know, I honestly expected the worst out of this date, Novak but… You aren't a half-bad guy. Could I… Could I take you out sometime without Liz having to set anything up?" Andelko asked, chuckling a bit. Novak smiled.

"Of course… I'm very glad to have met you, Andelko. Here," Novak reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out his wallet. He removed a business card from it and handed it to Andelko. "It has my number on it. Just call when you'd like to go out again. My schedule is open every day but Saturdays."

Andelko nodded. "Expect a call sometime soon then." He said with a smile. The two stood and headed out of the café.

"Do you have a car?" Andelko asked, wondering how the handicapped man was to get around.

"I actually live just down the street a few blocks. I can walk." Novak replied.

"Are you sure? Because I can drive you if you'd like." Andelko offered.

"It's fine. I'll see you soon, Andelko."

"Alright. I'll see you soon, Novak." Andelko waved a goodbye as Novak slowly walked off. The Croatian walked over to his car and got in, letting out a sigh.

The date had gone far better than he had expected. As much as he hated to admit any liking for a Serbian, Novak was an exception. There was a magnetism about the man that Andelko couldn't simply shake off.

Well, Elizibeta had won their bet. Fifty bucks was all hers; Andelko did in fact like Novak.

Great.


	3. Chapter 3

It was supposed to be Andelko's day off.

At three in the morning, his cell phone rung loudly; it was enough to stir him from sleep. He reached over, eyes only half opened, and grabbed his phone off of his bedside table. He groaned a bit when he realized that the call was from the hospital.

He placed the phone to his ear and answered.

"What the hell… do you want this early?" He asked groggily, sitting up.

"Andelko," Antonio started on the other line. "I know it's a bad time, but we need you here as soon as possible. We're short staffed and we have five patients in the ER, all with severe injuries. Zlatko and Apostol are working separately on two of the patients right now with the help of some of the other staff who know basics of operations; I'm going to be working on a third patient on my own. We need you here; I called Elizibeta but there was no answer. Sadik isn't on call; please, we can't lose these patients."

"What? What the hell happened to put five patients in the ER with severe injuries?" Andelko questioned with frustration running through his voice, getting up out of bed and starting to get dressed while Antonio explained what had happened.

"A vehicle carrying three people crashed into one carrying two. The people in the vehicle with three passengers were all drunk and-" A few shouts were heard through the receiver, interrupting Antonio. "Shit, Andelko, there's no time to explain, just get here soon!" The Spaniard exclaimed.

"I'll be there in a few minutes; keep those patients alive." Andelko said before hanging up. He rushed around, gathering his things before heading out. He knew he sped on his way to the hospital, but it didn't matter. There was no way he was letting any more patients die in such a short time frame. No matter how tired he was, he had to save the lives he could.

He ran into the hospital, hurrying to the ER. When he got there, one of the med students approached him.

"Doctor Begovich, right this way." She said, leading him to one of the operation rooms.

"Y-You're only a med student!" Andelko exclaimed, shocked at the fact that he was going to be helped by someone who wasn't even officially ready for something like this.

"I know, but I'm all that's left to save these patients. I know basics; I trust that you'll do the rest." The young woman replied as they got to the patient. Andelko had a look of pure shock on his face when he saw the condition of the man before him.

"What's your name, student?" Andelko looked to the med student.

"Lillian Zwingli." The young woman responded.

"Lillian, hook him up to vitals. You know how to do that much, right?" Andelko asked.

"Yes." Lillian quickly began hooking the man up to machines. Andelko looked over his patient once again.

"Alright, what do we know about him?" He questioned as he got on a pair of latex gloves and a doctor's mask.

"Thirty year old male; he was the driver in the car that was struck. He has glass in his chest and abdomen, along with multiple broken bones in his legs, chest, and arms. He sustained a blow to the head, but it's not enough to kill him. You need to get the glass out of him first and stop the hemorrhaging."

"For a med student, you know more than I expected. Monitor his vitals while I start the procedure."

Andelko grabbed a pair of forceps from a nearby tray then began to work, slowly pulling large shards of glass from the man's chest. He shook his head slightly as blood poured from the open wounds. Reaching for the drain, he knew he had to move as quickly as he could. He brought the drain to the wounds and sucked up what blood he could before making attempts to seal up the cuts made by the glass with sutures.

He let out a slow breath as he moved down to the patient's abdomen, retrieving the forceps once again and carefully picking the glass from the man's wounds, placing the objects on a pan once they were removed.

"Patients vitals are dropping slowly, doctor." Lillian informed. Andelko curse quietly, continuing on with the procedure. Once he had sealed up what he could he shook his head.

"There are still internal injuries. I need to make an incision and get to his organs. Keep me informed on his vitals." He ordered. He took a pair of scissors and cut away what clothing on the patient there still was before setting the scissors aside to grab a scalpel.

"Making incision." He said as he began to cut into the skin. Once the patient was opened up, he set the scalpel aside.

"Fuck… It's worse than I expected. Lillian, I'm going to need your help with this."

"What do you need, doctor?" The girl's voice was trembling slightly.

"I need you to work the drain and remove blood from the patient's chest cavity."

"B-But doctor, I-"

"Lillian, this is what you're training for. I trust you to do this with me, please. We can't wait much longer."

The med student took a deep breath then nodded, grabbing the drain. As Andelko got to work, removing bone fragments and glass from the patient's chest, the student did rather well at keeping her composure.

"Good. Keep doing what you're doing." The Croatian doctor praised.

"We're going to need artificial bone to replace what's missing in his ribcage. The fragments I had to take out are near impossible to reattach. Lillian, I need you to hurry and go to the lab and request synthetic bones immediately. You know where the lab is, right?" He asked.

"N-No, doctor. I don't." Lillian replied.

"… I'm leaving it up to you to keep this patient alive while I go down then. I trust you." Andelko said, setting his tools down and looking the med student in the eyes.

"… Okay, doctor. I'll do my best." She said. Andelko smiled slightly behind his mask before hurrying out of the room, running down to the lab where artificial bone was kept. Once of the lab workers turned to him, a bit shocked.

"D-Doctor Begovich? What're you doing here?" He asked.

"We need artificial bone for a patient who's missing parts of his ribs. We need it quick; I had to leave the patient in the hands of a med student. This is dire; I need it up at op-room H64 as soon as possible." Andelko explained quickly.

"Y-Yes doctor. We'll have it up as soon as we can."

Andelko nodded then hurried back to the operation room. When he entered, he was caught off guard by the sight of Apostol working on his patient.

"Apostol? What're you- is your patient alright?"He stammered.

"My patient is dead; I couldn't save her. I'm helping you now." Apostol informed. Andelko took a few breaths before joining the Bulgarian and the med student at the operation table.

"We have to keep him alive until the bone replacements arrive. The lab will have them up soon." He said. The three worked carefully, draining blood and doing what they could to try to keep the patient from dying.

When the artificial bone arrived, Apostol and Andelko took over completely, going through the procedure with extreme caution. When it was complete, they closed up the patient's chest.

"We still aren't done. The patient has multiple bones broken in his legs and arms." Andelko told Apostol.

"Let's work calmly and quickly; the more dangerous wounds are closed and we can move on. Let's start with his legs." The other doctor instructed. Andelko didn't need the instruction since he was the more experienced doctor, but he followed the man's lead regardless.

It took five hours in all to finally get the patient completely stabilized and on his way to recovery. The three in the room discarded of their gloves and masks before exiting.

Andelko let out a heavy sigh as Antonio approached him. "How many did we lose?" The Croat questioned.

"Three in all. Two young men and a young woman…" Antonio informed quietly. Andelko, out of frustration, clenched his fists and punched the wall beside him.

"That's four patients dead… in three god damn days!" He punched the wall once again, earning blood from the knuckles on his right hand.

"Andelko, stop. You're hurting yourself…" Antonio said, gently pulling the Croatian away from the wall and looking him in the eyes.

"I know this is hard on you… This hospital has never lost that many patients in such a short amount of time… But we all did our best to save these people. But some people cannot be saved… You know that fact as well as I do… and no matter what, we must continue working hard so that these kinds of deaths do not occur. People come into this ER to live. It is our job to secure their lives and bring them back from the brink they were on. Let this morning's tragedy be a reminder to us all that our job is never going to be without death. Everyone standing here…" Antonio motioned to the nurses, doctors, and students standing around.

"Everyone tried their best and did what they could this morning. We have been short staffed for the past few weeks. We have all suffered from this. But we have to continue on and do what we're paid to do. Whether we can save the patient's lives or not, we have to try. Let's put this tragedy behind us and move on with our work. There are more people who need us. Everyone, go back to your usual work."

The small crowd of staff dispersed and went back to doing their jobs. Andelko sighed a bit and reached up, wiping emerging tears from his eyes.

"You can go back home if you'd like, Andelko. I know you are very tired and this loss of patients will affect you for some time." Antonio commented.

"Thanks, Antonio… I'll… I'll see you tomorrow… Don't expect me to answer any calls in the meantime…" Andelko muttered before walking off. His footsteps were slow and he couldn't shake off the way he was feeling; depressed, useless, like a failure. He had saved his patient, but it took five hours. If he would have completed his operations sooner, he could have gone and tried to help the others.

He went down to his car in the parking garage and was soon driving home. The morning streets weren't quite so busy, so he got to his house rather quickly.

Upon entering the house he set his keys on the table like he always did, but instead of leaving to sleep, he sat at the table for a few moments, thinking, questioning what he could have done better. In the five hours that it took to get one patient completely stabilized, three others had died. What could Andelko have done? Why didn't he work quicker; do something to save those lives that were lost?

He slowly stood from his place and went over to one of the cabinets in his kitchen and opening it, reaching in and retrieving a pack of cigarettes. He hadn't smoked in two years, because in two years, he hadn't slipped into anything near depression. But this; what had happened in the ER earlier was getting to him. He took one of the cigarettes out of the pack then tossed the pack back into the cabinet. He had to limit himself; one cigarette was enough.

He retrieved a lighter from a nearby drawer then headed out to his front porch. He sat on the steps and lit the cigarette, taking a drag of his former crutch. He coughed slightly; two years without a cigarette had made him less used to the smoke entering his lungs.

He exhaled then ran his free hand through his black hair. God, he hated this. He hated smoking. He hated losing patients. He hated those calls early in the morning, and he hated how much overtime he worked. He had enough weight on his shoulders without having people like Elizibeta put more on; why did Andelko have like what he saw in Novak?

That Serb… What would he say if he knew how bad Andelko's situation was? What would he do to help him? Novak seemed like a nice enough man; he knew suffering. Having lost his leg, Novak would have had to deal with the pain of surgeries and rehabilitation. But did the Serbian know extreme emotional stress like Andelko did? Did he know what it felt like to lose the lives that were in his hands? Of course he didn't; Novak was a former soldier turned pianist. He had no dealings with the lives of the patients; he had been the patient. Two completely different spectrums; two different worlds. The patient and the savior; the injured and the healer.

He sighed shakily; perhaps he did need someone. He wouldn't have to deal with the stress alone… But what was he thinking? A relationship would only burden him more; he hardly had time to spend with anyone with the amount of time he worked.

But maybe Novak would understand. Maybe Novak would be able to deal with Andelko's constant working. Maybe he could turn it into something better than Andelko was interpreting it as.

What day was it; Friday? Novak had told Andelko that his schedule was open every day but Saturdays; perhaps today would be an alright day to spend some time with Novak and get to know him more.

Once Andelko finished his cigarette, he tossed it to the ground and crushed it with his foot before standing and heading back inside his home. He went to his bedroom where his cell phone and the card Novak had given him were. He read over the card, dialing the Serbian's number into his phone before hitting the 'send' button. He held the phone to his ear and awaited an answer; he hoped Novak would be awake at eight-thirty in the morning.

"_Hello?" _Came the answer on the other line. Novak sounded pretty much awake.

"Hey Novak, it's Andelko."

"_Ah, good morning. You're up early."_

"Yeah… Listen, I was wondering if you would want to go out to lunch with me around noon."

"_Sure… I hate to ask, but is something wrong? I can tell in your voice that you aren't doing so well."_

Andelko took a moment to respond, but decided to just tell the Serbian what had happened.

"I got a call at three this morning from the hospital… There had been a car accident involving a drunk driver… There were five people in all severely injured, and the ER was short-staffed… When I got there, my assistant was a med student. She wasn't even qualified to be working operations as tedious as we had… But she's all I had to work with… My patient, the one I worked on… It took five hours to get him stabilized. But in the time it took to get him stabilized, three out of five patients died in the ER's hands… I can't shake the feeling that I could have done more."

"… _That's understandably stressful. I'm assuming you've never lost this many patients before?"_

"No, not ever… The hospital's never lost three patients in the span of just a few hours… We've lost four total in the past three days…"

"_Everyone's done their best, haven't they? Despite the fact you're understaffed, you do your jobs to the best of your abilities, correct? I trust the hospital is sensible enough to have an ER that cooperates and does what they can no matter the cost to save their patients."_

"Yes, everyone has done what they could for the past few days… But I still feel like I could have done more today…"

"_You took five hours of your time to save one man's life successfully. If you would have left him without making sure he was stable, he would have died. Putting so much effort into saving a life is more honorable than you would think; five hours of your day were contributed to the wellbeing of a victim in a crash. You did it without hesitation, and to me, that is the most valuable trait to see in someone. Dedication. In your case, it's dedication to saving lives. You did your best, I'm sure. You worked with what you had, and saved your patients life. The three that died today; you cannot blame yourself for the losses."_

"Novak… H-How can you say these things to me when you hardly know who I-I am? How can you be so kind as t-to compliment me when I have failed to do what I am paid to do?"

"_Andelko, you haven't failed to do your job. You saved a life today. You made sure that the man you were assigned to help stayed alive. And as for me hardly knowing you? Andelko, I want to know you. That's why I am being so kind. You stand out to me; you work so hard for the sake of others. Does it not bring you pride that you save lives doing what you do?"_

"I… I suppose it does…"

"_At least you are not like I was before I lost my leg. I trained to eliminate threats; I trained to kill. I trained to end lives. You are the opposite of me, Andelko. You've studied for so long to get where you are now; to be the man you are now. I wish I could say that I could save someone's life. You're a different breed of person, Andelko. Selfless and kind; same goes for anyone working in the ER to save the lives of those they don't even know."_

"G-God, Novak… Why're you so understanding?"

"_Because I care. No one deserves to suffer because of something they couldn't control. You feel guilt for those lost in the ER despite the fact that you were not able to help them at the time. I wouldn't let anyone feel that kind of guilt; not you, not Liz, not anyone."_

"…" Andelko was speechless for a few moments.

"_Andelko? Are you there…?"_

"Y-Yeah…"

"_Get some sleep, alright? Save our date for a later time. You need to rest."_

"Alright… I'll see you soon, Novak."

"_Bye."_

"Bye…" With that, Andelko hung up setting his phone down.

Novak understood. He understood everything. He spoke in such a caring way, telling Andelko that he couldn't control what happened to the three that had died earlier in the morning. Andelko honestly felt closer to Novak now that he knew the Serb was a considerate and helpful individual.

Andelko walked over to his bed and laid down, staring up at the ceiling for a few moments before rolling over on his side and looking to a picture on his bedside table.

It was a picture of him as a teen with his mother, who was now deceased. She had died in an accident at her workplace; a factory where machines were extremely unsafe. When Andelko's mother had died, that's when he promised he would become a doctor, and save lives instead of watching helplessly as people died. His mother could have been saved, but no one had the materials or knowledge to save her. Andelko promised himself that he would do everything he did in honor of her. Not many knew the sentimental side of the Croat who held his mother's memory close to his heart.

"I saved a life today, majka…" He muttered. "Though we lost three today… I saved one. He was the driver of the vehicle that was crashed into… I spent five hours working on him with a med student, and towards the middle of the operations Apostol came in… I guess I could rant on for a while about the operation, but you wouldn't want to hear about that… You never did like hearing things that had to do with blood and gore and medicine…" He chuckled slightly. "I think I'm going to go to sleep… Possibly all day; it'd be nice to catch up on the rest I haven't gotten… "

Andelko rolled over onto his back and sighed before closing his eyes. People would think he was crazy if they saw him talking to a photograph, but the action gave him comfort. He missed his mother dearly. The photo was a constant reminder of why he did what he did. Why he spent so many hours in an ER, tired and frustrated.

The Croatian eventually drifted off into slumber, peacefully and quietly. He needed all the rest he could get; today was supposed to be his day off before he went back to work the next morning.

Surely in the ER the next day, things would be somber. He knew the fact like no other; losing so many people in a short amount of time was unheard of in the hospital's history. Understaffed and trying to push every doctor and nurse they had to their limit, the hospital was a difficult place to work sometimes. Andelko cherished the time he had to sleep.

When he awoke around nine at night, he was unable to drift back off into slumber. He sat up from his bed and rubbed his eyes. He let out a sigh then stood, heading to the kitchen to mend his empty stomach. Not having eaten anything all day, of course he would be hungry.

He sat at his couch, setting a plate of microwaveable chicken he had cooked down on the coffee table in front of him. He grabbed the television remote and flipped pressed the power button, deciding on watching "The Lost Battalion" to pass the time. He wasn't really into war movies much, but admittedly, he did like a few of them.

By the time the movie was over, Andelko had basically crashed on the couch, falling asleep once again. The empty plate the once held chicken was still sitting on the coffee table, along with an empty can of soda. It was a typical night for Andelko; whenever he was off work for a day, he always crashed on the couch watching television, and resorted to cleaning up the mess he had made in the morning when he woke up. Typically he woke up at some odd hour in the early morning, which didn't bother him much. He was used to waking up at strange hours.

When he awoke around two in the morning, it was easy for him to get up off the couch and clean up. He shut off the television, put the plate he had used away in the dishwasher, and threw the empty can of soda away before returning to his bedroom. He laid back down, rolling over to check the time setting on his alarm. It was set to wake him at six, like it always was. He had a six hour shift to work for the day, and then he was off.

Though he was going to find it hard to return to the ER after the events of the previous day, he knew he had no choice but to work. He hoped there would be no patients like the ones recently, but if there were, he was going to be ready.

It was his job, after all.


	4. Chapter 4

When Andelko returned to the hospital in the morning for work, things were just as expected; somber and slow-moving. Those who hadn't been in the ER the previous day knew what had happened. The sad looks on the faces of the nurses and doctors was a sobering reminder that lives could not always be saved, and when they weren't, it affected everyone.

Andelko approached his coworker Elizibeta's desk calmly, though he couldn't shake off the tension he knew he was radiating. He was tired, strained, and admittedly even a little depressed.

The Hungarian woman looked up at the Croat with a small smile as he sat in a chair next to her.

"Morning, Andelko." She greeted. Andelko nodded towards her, forcing a smile upon his face.

"How're you doing, Elizibeta?" He asked.

"I'm alright. And yourself?" The woman responded.

"I could be better."

"What's wrong?"

"I'm just not able to roll with the punches here…"

"What do you mean?"

"Just… Ugh, everything is working against me… The only thing really positive is…" The Croatian doctor trailed off.

"Is what?"

Andelko sighed. "Novak."

"Does this mean I get my fifty bucks?"

"Yes, it does. I'll give it to you at lunch."

"So you like Novak, huh?"

"Yeah… He's… He's really understanding. I don't know why, but he wants to get to know me more. And… I guess… I guess I want to get to know him more as well."

"This is so great, Andelko."

"Why? Because you managed to get fifty bucks out of me?" Andelko asked, chuckling a bit.

"No." Elizibeta replied, laughing slightly. "It's because you can finally be happy."

"I suppose… I guess I have to thank you for introducing Novak to me, huh?"

"It's not a problem, Andelko. For all the work you do, you deserve someone to care about you."

"Yeah… I guess so…" Andelko smiled, crossing his arms. The two looked up as Antonio approached them.

"You two; we've got a severe polytrauma coming in. Automobile accident."

"What damage in all does the patient have?" Andelko asked, standing.

"It's polytrauma, isn't it? We aren't all too sure. You'll just have to see when she gets up here."

"Come on, Andelko. Let's get to work." Elizibeta said as she stood up from her chair.

"Good luck you two." Antonio stated as the two hurried to the trauma center, where the patient would be taken.

The Hungarian and the Croatian got to the trauma center just as the patient was being wheeled into the room. Zlatko was already waiting there, silent as ever, holding a clipboard in one latex-gloved hand.

Andelko slipped on a pair of latex gloves and a surgical mask, then went over to the side of the patient.

"Zlatko, you have her information, correct?" He asked as Elizibeta joined in beside him, hooking their patient up to vitals.

"Yes. This is Michelle Kampman. Age thirty-nine. Blood type B positive. Severe polytrauma from an automobile accident." Zlatko responded.

"Alright, let's get to work… Let's get the bleeding stopped, and remove what is needed to do so. Zlatko, monitor the vitals."

Andelko looked over the female patient, trying to figure out where to start in the mess of blood and glass before him. The unconscious woman's bones were broken and shattered in places, causing the limbs to look malformed.

"… Andelko, are you going to do something?" Elizibeta snapped Andelko out of his temporary awe.

"Y-Yes." He stammered, reaching for a pair of scissors so that he could cut away the bloodied clothing on the patient.

He carefully cut away the cloth, succeeding though his hand was shaking. He set the scissors aside once the clothing was removed, and reached for a pair of tweezers. He brought the tool over the patient's torso, going to pick out a piece of glass from a wound, but his hand refused to steady and he fumbled with the tweezers, accidentally dropping them. The metal tool skittered across the floor, and Andelko took a step back.

"Are you okay, Andelko?" Elizibeta questioned.

"I-I don't know…" Andelko responded, suddenly feeling lightheaded. He stumbled slightly before falling backwards.

"Andelko!" Elizibeta shouted, attempting to catch him before he hit the ground hard. She practically fell with the Croatian, seeing that the difference in their heights and weights was hard to overcome.

Andelko blacked out for a little while; when he came to, he was lying in a hospital bed, an IV hooked up to his arm. He sat up quickly, only to feel a hand on his chest urging him to lie back down. He looked to his side to see who the hand belonged to, only to be greeted by the worried face of Novak Novkovic.

"Whoa there, Andelko… Take it easy. Elizibeta told me you blacked out when trying to work on a patient." Novak said as Andelko lay back down. The Croatian leaned his head back on the pillow, letting out a sigh. He felt completely hopeless; stuck in a weak, lethargic condition.

"Yeah… I did, I guess… I don't really know what happened… I just sort of fainted and… Yeah…"

"Have you been eating enough and such? I mean, you're the doctor here… You should know if you did anything to cause this."

"I… I don't really know… I'm guessing I just hit a wall… Too much work, too little sleep."

"What about your diet? Have you been eating alright?"

"Not really, now that I think about it…"

"I guess it's a combination of factors that caused this then, huh?"

"Yeah… I guess so…"

"How much have you been working? I mean, I know you work a lot, but how many hours would you say you've worked recently?"

"Too many… I've worked every day for the past four days… A twelve hour shift, a ten hour shift, a spontaneous five and a half hour shift at god knows what in the morning yesterday, and then today… I was supposed to work an eight hour shift today but… Yeah…"

"You need to take a vacation, Andelko… You work way too hard, and way too much. You're at your limit, obviously."

"… I can't help that the hospital is understaffed… It's forcing employees like me to take such insane hours…"

"How long has it been since you had a vacation?"

"A year or so."

"What's the longest amount of days you've had off in the past year?"

"Two days…"

"You're really pushing yourself to the edge, Andelko… I know mentally it seems easy, but physically it's wearing you down… If you don't take a break, you're going to end up in bad shape. You should know this. You're an ER nurse."

"Yeah… I just… God, I don't even know anymore… I thought I could handle this kind of work; I thought I could deal with so many hours but… I can't…"

"There are some things in life you are able to push yourself to a limit in. When I was in basic training for example; I trained day in and day out to become a soldier. I pushed myself to a physical and mental limit to serve my country and it paid off. I became a soldier. I had a reason to push myself so hard… but you… You're doing so much overtime and accepting so many hours all for what?"

"The pay is good…"

"But is it worth passing out from the exhaustion it puts you in? Does the money really make up for that?"

"… Not really…"

"Exactly. Andelko, please… Talk to your boss about taking a few weeks off. Sure, the hospital will get really busy, but you need some time to relax."

"… I guess I could talk to Doctor Carriedo about it…"

"Good…"

A light knocking came from the doorway; both men in the room turned to see who it was. There stood Elizibeta with a small frown on her face.

"Andelko, Andelko… See what you've done?" She asked, walking in. Andelko sighed and looked away.

"I know, Liz…" The Croatian muttered.

"You probably can already figure out what's wrong with you, huh?"

"Yeah… A combination of exhaustion and stress caused me to… well, faint…"

"Which means?"

"I need to take some time off…"

"Precisely. Now, I already talked to Antonio about this. He's going to stop in here in a couple minutes to talk with you."

"… Can I ask a question, Elizibeta?"

"What?"

"What happened to the patient?"

"We lost her."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me!"

"Calm down, Andelko… With that kind of polytrauma, there was no way we were going to be able to save her."

"That's how many patients lost in less than a week?"

"It doesn't matter, Andelko. We did our best, and that's what counts."

"It's all my fault… If I wouldn't have-"

"Andelko; it is not your fault one bit. Don't even start that with me." Elizibeta cut the Croat off, voice starting to sound angered. It was enough to silence Andelko.

A man clearing his throat brought the attention of the three in the room to the doorway, where a certain Spanish doctor was standing.

"Am I interrupting something, or is it okay for me to come in?" Antonio questioned, smiling.

"It's okay to come in." Elizibeta stated. The Spaniard nodded and approached the side of the bed.

"Good morning; Doctor Begovich, Doctor Hedervary." The man greeted the two employees. "And hello, sir." Antonio shook hands with Novak before looking to Andelko.

"Well, Andelko, it seems we've got quite the predicament with you, huh?" He said.

"Yeah…" Andelko muttered.

"I know that I've overworked you. You're a young guy with a lot of experience with tough situations. But I guess I didn't realize that you're just like the rest of us and can only take so much work… I'm going to give you the next three weeks off of work. Though this place undoubtedly will be strained in your absence, we know that when you get back you'll be back in good health and ready to get back to work. Now, how're you feeling right now?"

"Really lethargic. That's about it…"

"I'm going to run down and get some discharge papers and we'll get you out of here so that you can rest at home. Alright?"

"Sounds good."

Antonio nodded with a smile then exited the room. Elizibeta sighed and looked to Andelko.

"Work is going to kill without you around to tease." She commented. Andelko chuckled a bit.

"Go tease Pavla or something in my absence."

"Why would I tease her?"

"I don't even know. You're going to have to find someone else to tease though."

"I'll just tease Apostol. He's just as easy to tease as you are."

"True."

Elizibeta sighed a bit. "Well, let's get this IV out of your arm and get you dressed and on your feet. Antonio will be back any moment with the papers." She said, reaching for Andelko's arm. She first removed the fluid bag's attachment from the IV in the Croats arm, setting it aside for disposal later.

"Novak, are you alright to watch this kind of thing? Some people get queasy when they see and IV." Elizibeta looked to Novak.

"I'm fine with it, Liz. I watched my own leg get mangled in a machine; I think I'll be fine watching an IV get pulled out of Andy's arm." Novak replied to the woman, chuckling slightly as she tore the medical tape off of Andelko's arm, taking some of the dark hair that adorned his arm with it.

"Uh, ouch?" Andelko said, somewhat sarcastically. Elizibeta laughed a bit and proceeded to pull the IV from his arm.

Once the IV was discarded of, she turned back to the Croat, pressing a cotton ball to his skin and placing a bandage over it.

"Go on ahead and get dressed. Your clothes are in the bathroom. I hope you don't mind, but while you were unconscious I took your keys and went to your house. I tossed your scrubs in that dirty-laundry pile you always have at the corner of your room, and grabbed some fresh clothes for you."

"Wait, so you pretty much stole my clothes off my back, took my keys, jacked my car, went to my house and invaded my privacy, all for a different pair of clothes for me?" Andelko questioned.

"You gave me permission two months ago to do things like that for you." Elizibeta remarked. Andelko thought for a moment then sighed.

"Right… I remember now…"

Elizibeta laughed a bit. "I'm glad you trust me as much as you do."

"You're lucky I trust you like I do… Ugh… I'm just going to disregard the fact that you stripped me of my clothes while I was unconscious." Andelko said, bringing his legs over the edge of the hospital bed and standing. The hospital gown was a bit embarrassing, but now he knew how his patients typically felt.

"If it's any consolation, you have a great body, Andy." Elizibeta commented. Andelko's face turned red, and Novak's cheeks became slightly tinted as well.

"Shut up, Liz… Just… Ugh…" Andelko waved off the Hungarian then headed to the bathroom, where a pile of clothing was sitting on the sink, waiting for him.

He stripped himself of the hospital gown once he had closed the bathroom door behind him. He was sure the other two had seen his red and white checkered boxers when he had turned and went into the bathroom since the back of the gown was rather revealing, but he didn't mind. He was quite proud of his favorite pair of boxers.

He surveyed the clothing that Elizibeta had chosen for him to wear. A nice pair of black jeans, a blue t-shirt, and a red cardigan. He chuckled slightly.

"Just wow Elizibeta…" He muttered, getting dressed. Once he was dressed, he exited the bathroom only to see a Novak hiding his face in his hand while Elizibeta sat there, smirking proudly.

"Do I want to know what just happened?" He asked.

"Nice boxers, Andy." Elizibeta commented.

"Yes, I know. Back to business though." Andelko said, trying not to be bothered by the fact that Novak was still sitting there, completely flustered by what he had seen.

"You're pretty much good to go once Antonio gets the discharge papers." Elizibeta informed him. Like on a cue, Antonio entered the room with a few papers on hand.

"I'm pretty sure you know how these work, Andelko." Antonio said with a smile, handing them to the Croatian doctor.

"Got a pen?" Andelko asked.

"Si." Antonio reached into his pocket and retrieved a black pen, handing it to the other man, who began to fill out the discharge papers. After a few minutes of Andelko writing in his infamous script handwriting, he handed the papers back to Antonio.

"Alright. You're pretty much good to go. I'll see you in three weeks." With that, Antonio exited with the papers.

"Are you okay, Novak?" Elizibeta asked the Serbian who was still hiding his face.

"What did you say to him to make him like this?" Andelko asked.

"I just said "Andelko's got a nice ass, huh?"… Is that a crime?" Liz answered. Andelko's face turned a bright red, but he resisted the urge to cover his face.

"Your infatuation with my ass is a little… odd, Liz."

"What? Can you blame me?"

"As a matter of fact, I can't. But did you really have to speak to Novak like that?"

"I expected nothing less out of her…" Novak muttered from behind his hands.

"Yeah… Well, I guess it's time for me to get out of this hell hole." Andelko said, switching the subject off of the rather awkward one the three were on.

"Do you think you'll be able to drive alright?" Novak asked.

"I don't know. I'm hardly stable on my feet." Andelko responded.

"I walked to the hospital… I could drive your car and take you to your house."

"But then you'll have to walk all the way across town to your apartment."

"I can do that. My leg will be fine."

"… If you insist. Liz, what'd you do with my keys?" Andelko looked to Elizibeta.

"Check your pockets." The Hungarian woman replied. Andelko dug his hands into his pockets, and sure enough, his key ring was there in his left-front pocket, with all the key chains and keys still there.

"Here you go, Novak." The Croat handed the keys to the other man, who nodded a bit and stood.

"I'll see you later, Andy. I have to get back to work." Elizibeta said.

"Yeah. Take it easy, Liz." Andelko gave the younger woman a hug before she exited the room, heading off to probably check on patients.

Novak and Andelko walked out of the room, heading to the elevator to get to the basement floor. As they stood in the slow-moving elevator, a conversation arose.

"Three weeks off work, huh? What're you going to do?" Novak asked.

"I don't know. Be lazy for the first week, probably. Just try to clear my head and catch up on sleep." Andelko answered.

"I have a show at eight-fifteen tonight. Would you care to attend? If you're not too tired, that is."

"It sounds good to me. I'll just sleep the day away and get up around seven-thirty. Where are you playing?"

"The Brickyard."

"That's that nice 4-star place at the east side of town, isn't it?"

"Yeah. They host a lot of my local, small shows; they've got a stage and everything with a really nice grand piano. I enjoy playing there, though nowadays the time I've spent there is meager compared to actual venues… I'm getting more popular day by day, you know?"

"I wouldn't really know. I'm an ER Nurse; people only remember me because either A; I saved their life, or B; Elizibeta told them about me."

Novak chuckled a bit as they exited the elevator to the parking garage.

"That Liz… She's something else." He said.

"No kidding." Andelko replied, approaching his car. He went around to the passenger side and waited a few seconds for Novak to unlock the car before getting in. Novak got in the drivers seat with a sigh.

"You had me worried you know."

"Hm?" Andelko muttered, looking to the other man. He hadn't been paying attention to what he had said.

"You had me worried." The Serb repeated. "When Elizibeta called me and told me what happened, I got sick to my stomach. I'm glad there's nothing seriously wrong with you."

"You need not worry about me, Novak… I rarely get sick. My exhaustion was bound to afflict me sooner or later. Working such crazy hours… It's not good, ever."

"I'm glad your boss gave you three weeks off. I don't like to see anyone in bad shape, let alone the man I like."

Andelko's cheeks tinted a shade of red and he sighed a bit, bringing up his hand and covering his face to hide the blush. Novak chuckled a bit, glancing to the other man.

"Anyways… What's your address?" He asked, turning his eyes back to the road as he pulled out of the parking garage.

"Here…" Andelko said, reaching forward to the GPS sitting on his dashboard. He entered in his address, then set the GPS on it's stand once again. "I don't even know why the hell I have a GPS, but hey, it comes in handy sometimes…"

"238 Fraiser Drive, huh? I know where that is." Novak responded.

"Really?" Andelko asked. "Not a lot of people know."

"I have a good friend who lives on that street."

"Who?"

"Alexianos Kirzigian. He worked with me playing acoustic guitar for a few songs on my album."

"Oh, Alex? He's my neighbor."

"Really? That's interesting. Do you and him talk much?"

"No. Occasionally we'll chat if we're both outside doing something, but since I'm always either working or sleeping, I'm not outside much."

"Well, now that you have a few weeks off work, maybe you should get in touch with him more, you know?"

"I suppose… But first things first; I need to catch up on my sleep before I even think about getting acquainted with my neighbor more."

"Yeah."

Novak pulled the car into the driveway of Andelko's house then stopped, smiling a bit. He took the keys out of the ignition and handed them to the Croatian beside him. Andelko sighed and put the keys in his pocket.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright walking back to your place? I can't help but worry. I mean… With your leg, I just don't know if you should walk that far. You may be accustomed to it, but it'll really bother me knowing that a man with a prosthetic limb has to walk pretty much across town…" The bearded man said.

"I can't blame you." Novak responded. "You're a medical professional. It's only natural that you care for someone in my position. But don't worry, Andy. I'll be fine."

"Are you sure? Because I'll gladly let you stay here for a while. I have an old keyboard in my bedroom closet somewhere if you need to practice your playing a bit…"

"… You know what? I think I'll take you up on this offer. I suppose it would be smart for me to not walk across town just to go to my apartment." Novak replied with a smile on his face.

"That takes some worry off of my shoulders. Come on. I'll find that keyboard for you." Andelko got out of the car, and Novak did the same.

Upon entering the home, Novak meandered over to a chair in the living room, sitting down. Andelko watched as the man leaned down to remove his shoes, getting the one on his real leg off first before going to his prosthetic. He untied the shoestrings with nimble hands, then removed the shoe, revealing the foot of a black prosthesis.

Novak looked up at Andelko, noticing the Croat's staring.

"It can't be that odd to you. You're an ER Nurse, Andy." He stated.

"It's not that it's odd to me… It's just that I don't typically see Osseointegrated prosthetics." Andelko replied.

"Would you like to take a look at it? I'm sure it intrigues you." Novak motioned to the limb slightly with one hand. Andelko, letting curiosity get the best of him, nodded a bit and went over to the Serbian.

He kneeled down in front of him, allowing the Serbian to roll up his pant leg before Andelko inspected the prosthetic. He could see the titanium bolt implanted into Novak's leg, which was connected to the prosthesis by tight screws.

"You can take the leg part off pretty much any time you'd like, correct?" The Croatian asked.

"Yeah. As long as I have my tool on me." Novak answered, reaching into his pocket and retrieving a small, l-shaped piece of metal that fit into the ends of the screws on his prosthesis.

"… I hope you don't mind me asking, but what exactly happened to you the day you lost your leg?" Andelko questioned as the other man put the small tool back in his pocket.

"I don't mind you asking at all. Usually that's the first thing people ask me when they meet me." Novak said, chuckling a bit. Andelko stood, the went over to the couch adjacent to the chair, taking a seat to listen to the story of how this Serbian man lost his leg.

"It was a regular day working at the base. I worked on factory machines when I wasn't deployed or training; the machines produced bulletproof steel plates that we used to make equipment for firing ranges on base. Sadly, the base I was on was very unregulated. It was an unsafe machine that I was trying to fix… I had to get into the gears of it in order to repair what needed to be repaired… The machine had a lot of moving parts; let's leave it at that. I knew I had shut the machine down. I knew I had. I got in between two of the parts, then reached up with a wrench to unscrew a bolt."

"My hands, having been made slippery by the grease on the machine, didn't have a lot of grip on anything I tried to hold. So when I went to unscrew that one bolt, I lost grip on the wrench I had and dropped it. When I leaned down to get it, I hit my head on a metal bar. I stumbled back a bit from the hit to my head, then tripped over a different metal bar that was closer to the ground. I fell onto my back, and just happened to smack the switch to start the machine with my hand on the way down."

"So the machine started. I managed to get one leg out of the way, but the laces on my boot on my other leg got caught on a part of the machine. I struggled to get it out, but the machine won the fight and it clamped down on my calf… I screamed in pain as my leg was crushed… As the parts of the machine kept moving, I got pulled a bit further into it. I don't remember at what point my leg got severed, but it did, and that's when two other soldiers in the factory were able to pull me out."

"I was bleeding profusely, and all I could do was scream and cry… I started getting weak after about five minutes, but luckily the other men got me to the infirmary on base rather quickly. The medics stopped the bleeding, then I was airlifted to a hospital, where they had to amputate above where the machine had severed… It was indescribable how much pain I was in. When I awoke after the surgery, I… I was in shock. I cried for days; every time I looked at my leg, I knew that everything I had worked for to be a soldier was over… But eventually, I recovered enough to gain the options for prosthetic implants. Obviously, I chose to take the risk of osseointegration. Nowadays, after a few years, I'm living a normal life. It's amazing, really."

Andelko stayed silent for a moment, processing in his mind the story he had just been told. Novak had been conscious when his leg had been mangled by a machine on an army base in Serbia. Andelko had heard of and seen some very gruesome and painful things, but most people he'd seen with an excruciating injury weren't even conscious.

It was purely a miracle that Novak had only lost a leg in such an accident that he had gone through.

"Andelko?" Novak's voice pulled Andelko out of his temporary awe, causing the Croatian man to shake his head slightly.

"Sorry, I just… That's an incredibly vivid image in my mind of what you went through. I mean… With all that I've seen in the ER, I figured this would be nothing new, but the way you lost your leg; the way you were conscious the entire time… It puts me in awe." Andelko explained.

Novak chuckled slightly. "You should go rest, Andy. You need your sleep. I'm surprised you stayed awake through that story."

Andelko stood. "But first, allow me to get that keyboard I mentioned earlier." He said. Novak nodded, and the Croat left the room.

Andelko went to his bedroom, heading to the closet and sliding the door open. Within the closet lay the junk he had acquired over the years; boxes of items he would never put to use, and leaning up against the wall, a dusty electric keyboard.

Andelko reached into the closet and pulled the item out of it's dwelling. Dusting it off with a hand, he looked it over. He flipped the on-off switch to "on" and smiled a bit when a small green light above the keys turned on.

He flipped the switch to "off", then lifted up the instrument, taking it out to the living room where Novak awaited. The Serbian's eyes lit up when he saw the keyboard, and a small smile appeared on his face.

"Here." Andelko said, handing the keyboard to the other man. "If you want to, go ahead and clear off the coffee table and set it there. I don't mind. If you get hungry or anything, feel free to raid my kitchen. I don't really care. I'll be trying to sleep in my bedroom, just down the hall to the left. If you need anything from me, just walk in and ask. If I'm asleep, feel free to wake me."

"Alright. Thank you, Andelko." Novak said, smiling up at the man.

"It's not a problem. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be heading to bed."

"Sleep well."

Andelko nodded a bit then exited the living room once again, heading back to his bedroom. He shut the door behind him, then went over to the closet, sliding shut the door to it as well. He then undressed himself, stripping down to his boxers.

Typically, the Croat would sleep in just his boxers, but since he had given Novak permission to come in and wake him if needed, he went over to one of his dressers and retrieved a pair of fleece pajama pants. If Novak did come in to wake him, at least he would be wearing something he could get up and walk around in without feeling too exposed. At least it wasn't a hospital gown.

After slipping on the pajama pants, Andelko crawled into his bed, burying himself under the covers. Warmed by the blankets over his body, it was easy for him to sleep, even with the sound of the keyboard being played out in the living room.

Soft lyrics coming from a Serbian's voice further put Andelko to sleep.

"_What we fight for isn't listed on the news,_

_Or talked about in your local shipyard crews,_

_What we fight for isn't another's to choose,_

_But what we fight for is theirs to lose."_


	5. Chapter 5

When Andelko awoke around 7:15 PM, he felt rested. Though he hadn't caught up on all sleep he'd been lacking, just sleeping for more than he usually did felt wonderful.

He crawled out of bed and stretched his limbs, going to the bathroom to take a quick shower and freshen up. Once he had showered and dried off, he got dressed in a pair of jeans and a black button up. He slipped on a pair of socks then headed out of his bedroom, grabbing his watch off his dresser on the way out.

He went to the living room, smiling a bit when he saw Novak talking on his cell phone with a bottle of water in his free hand. As Andelko headed to the front door to get his shoes, he slipped his watch onto his wrist, before grabbing his shoes and heading back to the living room.

He sat down on the couch as Novak hung up his cell phone.

"Did you sleep well, Andy?" The Serbian questioned, walking over and sitting down next to him.

"Yeah. It felt great." Andelko responded as he got his shoes on.

"That's good… I'm glad you got some rest."

"I'll actually be awake to hear you play." Andelko said. "I'm going to be honest; I'm excited to hear your music."

"Really? You don't come off much as a guy who listens to music all that much."

"I like music, it's just I typically don't have time to listen to it much."

"What kind of music do you like?"

"I like some rock songs, but acoustic and piano songs appeal to me equally. I'll listen to some more hard rock if it's a decent song, but the softer things are what I enjoy more."

"Well, then I have a feeling you'll like my music." Novak smiled and glanced at the clock on the wall. "You ready to go?" He asked.

"Yeah. Just let me grab my keys off of my dresser, and we'll head out. You can head to the car if you'd like." Andelko responded, standing up and heading to his bedroom. He snatched his keys off his dresser and headed back out of the bedroom, following Novak out the front door.

They soon found themselves at The Brickyard at the east side of the city. While Novak headed behind the stage in the building, Andelko sat at an empty table towards the right side of the stage. The place was nice; he had to admit.

A middle-aged man walked out onto the stage, placing a microphone stand and microphone by the piano, bending the stand in order for it to capture the voice of the man who would soon be playing and singing. He took the mic for a moment and went to the front of the stage.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. It's so good to see you all here tonight. I see some new faces here, as well as some of the regulars. For those of you who don't know who I am, I'm Lodovico Vargas, the owner of this restaurant. We have a very special guest here to play for us tonight; he plays here often, and he plays very well. Allow me to introduce to you, Novak Novkovic." Lodovico went back to the piano and placed the microphone back on the microphone stand, heading off of the stage as Novak came on.

The Serbian sat down at the piano bench and turned to the crowd a bit.

"It's very good to be here once again. As Lodovico said, I am Novak Novkovic. Please, relax and enjoy my music. I am sure it won't be too detrimental to your ears." He said, chuckling slightly, and receiving some light laughter from the people sitting at their tables.

"Alright… Let's get started here tonight with a song I wrote last year. Many of you may know it as one of my more popular songs; _"Grounded"_."

Novak began to play the instrument in front of him, fingers on one hand lightly pressing on the keys a low and steady chord; the pace at a slow _1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4..._

His other hand pressed down on a higher key, beginning a back-and-forth repetition, for every two chords with his left hand, there were three keys pressed with his right.

Novak, after playing a few measures of the same tune, began to sing.

"_What have I done to deserve this…?" _His voice was softer than Andelko expected, and just that small sentence carried more emotion than the Croat could describe.

"_What have I done wrong…?_

_What have I done to never, ever, feel… again?"_

Novak's hands started playing a bit more complicated a measure as the man continued.

"_And what did I do…_

_To never believe again?_

_Oh, not again…"_

"_Somebody has to cut me down,_

_Stop this bleeding, reach around,_

_Somebody needs to bring this pain,_

_And get me grounded once again…"_

Andelko listened in awe at the man's chorus; his voice held such power, and such emotion. No wonder Novak was becoming famous day by day; his voice was absolutely _remarkable._

"_What have I done wrong?_

_What have I done to never, ever, be again?_

_And what did I do,_

_To never see again?_

_Oh, not again…"_

"_Somebody has to cut me down,_

_Stop this bleeding, reach around,_

_Somebody needs to bring this pain,_

_And get me grounded once again."_

"_Somebody has to shut me down,_

_Stop my heart and turn around,_

_Somebody needs bring me pain,_

_And force me to be grounded…_

_Forever again."_

Novak bowed his head away from the microphone and played a sort of solo before starting to sing once again.

"_Please don't let this panic go wrong,_

_And please don't let this last for too long,_

_And please… release me,_

_And keep me here…"_

He stopped playing for a moment to sing a very soft chorus, voice filled with incredible emotion.

"_Somebody has to cut me down…_

_Stop this bleeding… Reach around…_

_Somebody needs to bring this pain…_

_And get me grounded once again…"_

The man finished the song and the people in the building clapped and some cheered. Andelko clapped his hands a bit, in a slight daze from his awe. Novak was simply incredible. The lyrics, the music, his tone of voice; everything just sounded perfect.

"Thank you, thank you… You know, a lot of people ask me what that song is about… To be honest, I'm not all too sure. I suppose it was a mix of emotions that led to my writing. Often my songs spur from events that happen in my life. Years ago, I lost my left leg from the knee down in a machinery accident back in my home country of Serbia. It was a devastating blow to me, seeing that I was an enlisted soldier at the time… I had worked so hard to become a soldier, only to lose so much in just a few moments. I was destroyed by the loss of my leg, but I bounced back after going through bouts of depression. This is a song about overcoming something. The lyrics to this song are in Serbian, but the main thing you need to know, is that no matter what you're going through, you'll be alright. This song is called _"Sada"_, meaning 'Now'."

Novak hit a strong chord and began to sing in his native tongue; Andelko tried hard to pick out words he knew. He knew the words were merely basic once he heard what the man was saying, but Andelko hadn't spoken a lick of a Serbo-Croatian language in years. He hardly understood.

"_Gde? Tamo._

_Šta? Ono._

_Loše se osećam…"_

The Serbian singer held the last syllable of the last word in the verse as he played a small tangent of music. He then began to sing again, tone of voice louder than in the previous song.

"_Dobro, dobro sam._

_Nyema nishta novo,_

_Nye brini!"_

He held the last note once again, stronger than the last. He held such power in his voice, but he somehow kept emotion in the tone.

"_Bićyesh dobra!_

_Bićyesh dobra!_

_Joochye,_

_Sootra,_

_Sada!"_

"_Gde? Tamo._

_Šta? Ono._

_Loše se osećam…"_

"_Dobro, dobro sam._

_Nyema nishta novo,_

_Nye brini!"_

"_Zashto? Nye znam._

_Kako? Nye znam._

_Izgoobio sam sye…"_

"_Bićyesh dobra!_

_Bićyesh dobra!_

_Joochye,_

_Sootra,_

_Sada!"_

"_Bićyesh dobra!_

_Bićyesh dobra!_

_Joochye,_

_Sootra,_

_Sada! Oh, sada!"_

Novak finished the song, and smiled slightly as the crowd cheered even when none of them could understand a word he had sang.

"Bićyesh dobra… You will be okay. Joochye, sootra, sada… Yesterday, tomorrow, now. A lot of people have questioned why I say 'yesterday' in the chorus of the song. Joochye… I say 'yesterday' in the chorus, because you will be okay with your past. You will be okay with what has happened in your life. You will come to terms with yesterday, you will look forward to tomorrow, and you will be okay with now."

"It is a good message, I suppose. I dislike throwing negativity into the world through music. I want to give people hope; I want to show them that no matter what they're going through, or what they've lost, they can overcome anything, just like how I've overcome the struggles with losing a leg. I've coped with my loss, and made myself better from my experiences… This next song is one of my favorites to sing. Though it is primarily in Serbian, there are some English parts… This is "_Doviđenja, moja bol"_."

Novak began to play and sing once again, gaining an applause once again after the song. He played a total of ten songs through the night; one as merely an encore song.

As the show came to close, Novak left the stage and walked over to Andelko, who was still sitting in his seat.

"You ready to go, Andy?" The Serbian questioned. Andelko nodded and stood, smiling at the blonde-haired man.

"You were simply remarkable tonight, Novak… Just from you talking, I never would have guessed you could put so much emotion into your voice. That first song was indescribable…" He commented.

"Thank you. I don't particularly think of my voice to be that great, but most people think it is. I must say though, I'm glad you enjoyed the show."

"Yeah… Well, shall we head out?"

"Yes. Will you take me to my apartment?"

"Of course. Come on." Andelko led Novak out of the building and to his car. As they drove to Novak's apartment, Novak remained quiet the majority of the time, fingers tapping an unknown rhythm on his thigh. It was as if he were coming up with a new tune in his head. He seemed so deep in thought, Andelko couldn't help but question him.

"Thinking quite a bit there, Novak…?"

Novak glanced to him. "Hm? Oh, yeah… I've got an idea for a new song… I'm thinking the music through in my head."

"Any lyrics you're thinking of?"

"Ah… Just a few. I don't know if they're any good though."

"May I hear them? It doesn't matter to me if they're any good or not."

"Alright…" The Serb cleared his throat then began to sing softly an a cappella verse.

"_Going sleepless another night,_

_Struggling to win, losing the fight,_

_I know that you know what you do is right,_

_But there's only so much you can take tonight."_

Novak chuckled slightly after finishing, shaking his head. "It sounds ridiculous…"

"No, it sounds great… It amazes me how you can come up with something like that in such a short amount of time."

"It's just a talent, I suppose… The inspiration for those lyrics is sitting right next to me."

"… Huh?"

"You, Andelko. You inspired me to come up with that. Working at the hospital, you go sleepless in order to save lives. As of recent, you've been unable to help patients to your full potential because of your exhaustion. What you do is an extremely honorable thing, it's the most right and just thing on the planet… Bu there's only so much work that your body can handle." As Novak finished explaining, Andelko pulled into the parking lot beside Novak's duplex apartment. He stopped in a parking space and was silent for a few moments.

"… I don't know what to say…" He muttered. Novak chuckled and reached over, taking a hold of the Croatian's hand.

"You don't have to say anything, Andy. I know it may be a bit of a shock to you that I would come up with something based on you, but… I cannot help that you have inspired me."

"… You truly are a remarkable man, Novak… To find inspiration in a man like me is… it's just not something I thought could ever happen."

"You are very inspiring, Andy. Trust me, you are."

The two got slightly closer to each other before Novak took a chance, and a step in what was starting to be a relationship. The Serbian leaned in and pressed his lips to the bearded man's. Andelko's eyes slid shut at the contact, and he felt his cheeks heat up.

'_Good God…' _He thought. _'He's kissing me…'_

It was a blissful moment the Croatian never wanted to end, but like all things, the kiss ended when Novak pulled away. They stared at each other for a few seconds; both of their faces were tinted red, and smiles grew upon their features.

"… Could I see you tomorrow, Andelko?" Novak asked.

"Of course…" Andelko responded. "Just give me a call whenever… I may not be awake for much of the morning, just a warning."

"You have sleep to catch up on, I know… I'll give you a call around noon."

"Sounds good to me…"

"Well, I'll be seeing you then, Andy." Novak said with a smile, exiting the vehicle and heading up to his apartment. Andelko sat there in his car for a moment, trying to get his mind to calm down so that he could focus on driving, but he couldn't get the events of tonight off his mind.

Man, would Elizibeta get excited if she found out that he and Novak had kissed.

Andelko chuckled a bit and began the drive home, forcing himself not to break into a huge grin while on the road. His heart was still racing, pounding in his chest like a drum. His face, though not quite as red as it had been, still heated up a bit at the thought of kissing Novak once again.

Once Andelko had gotten home, he went to his bedroom and got undressed so that he could go to bed. Once in his boxers, he laid down, but he knew no sleep would come to him right away.

He lay there for what must've been two hours, and slumber never took it's hold on him. Glancing over at his digital clock, he sighed. It was just past midnight.

He grabbed his phone from beside the clock and went through his contacts, deciding to text Novak.

_Sent: 12:04 AM_

_Hey. You awake?_

Andelko waited a little while before his phone buzzed.

_Received: 12:07 AM_

_Yep. Been writing for the past two hours. Why're you up?_

_Sent: 12:08 AM_

_I can't sleep. A certain Serbian has been on my mind._

_Received: 12:08 AM_

_Would that certain Serbian happen to be me?_

_Sent: 12:09 AM_

_Yes, it would be._

_Received: 12:12 AM_

_Is there anything I can do to help you sleep, Andy?_

_Sent: 12:14 AM_

_I don't know. Anything you suggest that would help?_

_Received: 12:15 AM_

_Did anything help you sleep when you got home from the hospital?_

_Sent: 12:17 AM_

_Your voice… When you were playing and singing in my home, it put me to sleep so quickly._

_Received: 12:21 AM_

_If you'd like, you can come here to my apartment and sleep on the couch. My piano is in the room beside it; would you be able to sleep then?_

_Sent: 12:23 AM_

_I suppose. But I don't want to intrude._

_Received: 12:24 AM_

_You wouldn't be intruding._

_Sent: 12:25 AM_

_Are you sure?_

_Received: 12:25 AM_

_Yes._

_Sent: 12:27 AM_

_Then I guess I'll head on over. Expect a knocking on your door in a little while._

_Received: 12:28 AM_

_Alright._

Andelko sighed; God, he felt like he was going too be intruding on Novak's privacy, but the man said that he wouldn't be.

The Croatian got up and tossed on a pair of sweatpants and a tee-shirt, not caring if he looked all too decent. He was just going to be sleeping at Novak's, afterall. Slipping on his shoes and grabbing his keys, he headed out the door and to his car.

He soon found himself parking in an open space in the parking lot beside Novak's apartment, and hopping out of his car. He had to admit, he was a bit nervous about sleeping in Novak's place, but he knew he had nothing to worry about.

Stepping up to the door to the Serbian's home, he knocked a few times. The door was answered a few seconds later by a smiling Serb, who was wearing a pair of black shorts and a white tank top.

"Hey there, Andelko. Come in." Novak greeted, stepping aside and holding the door open from Andelko, who smiled at the other man.

Glancing around, Andelko noted how simple the apartment looked.

In the front room, assumingly Novak's living room, there was a black couch against the far wall, a round wooden coffee table with a few things scattered on it in front of the couch, an off-white shelf against the wall adjacent to them, and a television mounted on the wall closest to where Andelko and Novak stood.

The walls were painted a pale red, and the carpeting was an off-white like the book-laden shelf.

"You've got a decent-looking place here, Novak." Andelko commented.

"Yeah, I suppose. I try to keep it nice." The Serb replied. "Why don't you come to the piano room? I'll show you where I spend way too much of my time."

Andelko followed the man through a doorway, greeted by a large white-walled room with a grand piano in the center. There was a desk over at the side of the room with a computer and some recording equipment sitting on it, as well as a stack of CDs.

The Croat wandered over to the piano with Novak, fingers ghosting over the white keys. Novak sat at the bench and smiled a bit, patting the space next to him. Andelko sat down and Novak placed a his hands on the keys, beginning to play a calming, smooth melody. After a few moments, he stopped.

"Could you fall asleep with something like that being played?" He questioned, glancing to the Croat.

"Yeah… Definitely." Andelko responded, nodding his head. Novak smiled and turned his eyes back to the keys.

"You can go lay down if you'd like. The couch is more comfortable than it looks, believe it or not. I've slept on it more than once." He said, chuckling a bit. Andelko leaned over and placed a kiss on the Serb's cheek before standing.

"Thanks, Novak." He muttered, grinning when he saw the Serbian's face turn red from the display of affection.

"You're welcome…" The blushing man at the piano responded quietly.

"Why're you so bashful? That's nothing compared to how you kissed me in the car earlier." Andelko said, smirking and sitting back on the piano bench.

He placed a hand on Novak's waist, using the other to turn the Serb's face towards his. Leaning in and pressing his lips to Novak's was a daring move, but he did it regardless. He smiled into the embrace as he felt Novak place his arms around his waist, pulling him closer.

When they broke apart, Andelko pressed his forehead against the other man's. Novak reached up and itched around his mouth, chuckling a bit.

"Your beard itches." He commented. Andelko laughed a bit.

"I guess you'll have to get used to it. I've had this beard for six years." He replied.

"You must be so proud of yourself." Novak said with sarcasm. "Though I don't have much room to talk; I've had sideburns since I was a teenager."

"I don't think either of us would look right without our facial hair."

"Probably not… You should go et some sleep, Andelko. I'll just be here playing for a while."

"Alright… Thanks for letting me stay here tonight, Novak."

"It's not a problem, Andy."

Andelko stood from the piano bench and headed back to the front room, laying down on the couch and making himself comfortable. Novak had been right; the couch was pretty damn comfortable.

As he closed his eyes, he heard the soft tapping and sounds of piano keys in the other room. He listened, letting his mind fall into a trance as Novak began to sing.

"_Can I be dreaming once again?  
>I'm reaching helpless I descend…<br>You lead me deeper through this maze…  
>I'm not afraid, I'm lost in you…"*<em>

Andelko slowly drifted off into peaceful sleep, Novak's voice and musical talent working like a lullaby for the Croatian ER Trauma Nurse.

When he awoke, it was around ten in the morning, and there was some talking coming from the piano room. Listening in on the conversation, Andelko identified one of the people as Novak, and the other as a man with what seemed to be an Italian accent.

"I told you three weeks, Novkovic. Three weeks."

"I haven't been raking in as much money as I expected, Lovino. Just give me another week; please… I'll have the money, I swear."

"You told me that six years ago. You lied!"

"Please, lower your voice. I don't want to wake Andelko…"

"I shouldn't have to lower my voice. You should have gotten the money!"

"Lovino, please! P-Put the knife away! I swear, I'll have your money in a week!"

"You'll have five grand in a week. Right, Novak. Right. You know what? I'll be generous. I'll give you another month. Four weeks. If I don't have that money in four weeks, you're going to be in deep shit. The boss is not going to be happy about me giving you so much time to pay up."

The Italian guy, apparently named Lovino, stormed out of the piano room and out the front door. Andelko stood up from the couch and went to the piano room. He saw Novak standing by his piano, holding his hand over what was obviously a gash in his left cheek.

"The _mafia,_ Novak?"

Novak looked to him, a shocked expression on his face. "I-I swear, I can explain."

"What did you do to get the mafia of all things pissed at you?"

"I-I just…"

"You just what?"

"I-I borrowed some money from them back in Serbia…"

"Do explain yourself further."

"I-It's not like I'm a criminal or anything… When I was nineteen I-I took a trip to Italy with the owner o-of the piano shop I worked with in Belgrade. Mr. Edelstein, his name was… I-I… Mr. Edelstein needed money to keep the business running back in Belgrade, because the deal for a new shop in Venice didn't go so well…"

"I-I just wanted to help Mr. Edelstein, s-so I went to the local mafia members and… I-I borrowed 1,500 Euros from them… I-I haven't paid them back for six years… They followed me here a-and… They've harassed me for the money, but… I-I don't have it. My debt to them i-is around 3,800 Euros; around 5,000 dollars here in the states…"

"This is just going to get worse until you get the money to pay them, Novak. You know that."

"I-I'm sorry, Andelko… I-I just… I made a mistake back then, a-and it's threatening my life nowadays… I-I was stupid."

"Are there any other debts I should know about before I try to help you out?"

"Th-That's the only one I-I have; I swear."

"I'll believe you for now. But if I find out you have more than just the five grand to pay those guys, you're not only going to be in trouble with them, but also me.

"I-I wouldn't lie to you, Andelko. I promise, that five grand is all I have to pay them…"

"How are you going to pay it off?"

"That's…. That's what I can't figure out… I can never get enough money to pay them. I play a few shows, get around 3,000 dollars for each show, but thanks to deductions, I only get around 1,000 out of that. Then I have to pay my bills and… I-I just can't ever get enough money to pay them."

"What about that rich uncle of yours that paid for your osseointegrated leg?"

"I-I asked him for the money last year, a-and he said he wouldn't ever give me any money again because the operations cost so much…"

"What would you say if I tried to help you?"

"I-I couldn't let you do that… You hardly know me."

"Maybe I don't know everything about you, but this is something I want to get resolved before the mafia tries to kill you."

"It's not like you can pull five grand out of nowhere, Andelko… That's a lot of money to put into something like this."

"How about I meet you in the middle with this? I'll get 2,500 dollars, and I'll give it to you once you have 2,500 you can spare to pay the mafia back. That way I can be sure that you do in fact pay off your debt."

"… That's still a lot of money, Andelko… A-Are you sure you want to help me out like this?"

"I'm sure. I promise you, Novak, I won't let anything happen to you. And if you get hurt somewhere in this process of dealing with the mafia, whether I'm on vacation or not, I'm going to be the one to save you."

Novak nodded quietly, silent tears running down his cheeks as he sat down on the piano bench. Andelko went and sat next to him, wrapping his arms around the other man in an attempt to comfort him.

"I promise I'll help you through this."

**Xxx**

*****These lyrics are from Red's song "Lost".


	6. Chapter 6

Andelko didn't think he would be seeing any blood or having to do any medical procedures during his vacation.

But since Novak's cheek had been cut by the knife a mafia member had threatened him with, Andelko had taken it upon himself to do some minor first aid to the wound. Novak leaned against the sink in the bathroom while Andelko stood in front of him, soaking a cotton ball in some rubbing alcohol, then ringing the cotton out. He had gotten the supplies from a first aid kit Novak had kept under the sink.

"Hold still, Novak. This may sting a bit." The Croat said, placing a hand on the other man's shoulder to steady him. He dabbed the damp cotton ball against the cut on Novak's cheek, causing the other man to flinch in pain.

"Didn't I say to hold still?" Andelko scolded slightly.

"Sorry… I may have experienced extreme amounts of pain, but that doesn't mean I'm a masochist. Pain still hurts." Novak muttered.

"I know that. I'm not an idiot, Novak." Andelko retorted, continuing to dab the cut with the cotton ball.

"Why are you sounding so hostile…?"

"I know I told you I would help you pay off your debt, but I'm not happy about it… It disappoints me that you went to the Italian mafia to help Mr. Edelstein."

"I didn't know any better."

"Bullshit."

"I-I wasn't raised the way I should have been! I swear… I knew no better…"

"How couldn't you have known better?"

"My family… M-My family used to be really involved i-in the Yugoslav wars… Th-They got rich off of secret political schemes… I-I… I was brought up in a rich family…. They tried to raise me to hate people like Croats and Bosnians… a-and… I-I was taught to do anything to help those you cared about, no matter the danger or consequence, because I-I had connections…"

"That's foolish. You must know that now."

"I know that now, but back then I didn't… I-I was stupid…"

Andelko sighed and threw the bloodied cotton ball in the garbage can beside the sink, grabbing a square patch of gauze from the first aid kit, as well as some medical tape. He pressed the gauze to the cut on Novak's cheek, then taped it into place.

"There. Take that off before you go to sleep tonight to let the cut get some oxygen." The Croatian instructed.

"Alright… I-I'm sorry, Andy, for all this…" Novak muttered, looking away. Andelko chuckled a bit, then let out a sigh.

"Everyone makes mistakes, Novak. Some are bigger than others. Don't think too hard, alright? Just focus on setting aside a fraction of the money you earn so that you can get it up to that 2,500 you need. Once it's to that point, tell me, and I'll pitch in my 2,500."

"Okay… Are you going to head home, Andelko?"

The Croat shrugged a bit. "If I do, I'm just going to clean up my house a bit and do some menial chores before going right back to sleep."

"… I-I don't now if you'll want to stay here again, considering the fact that the mafia is on my back… God knows they won't keep their word with giving me a month to pay my debt…"

"Why don't you just report the authorities on them?"

"That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard you say. Do you have any clue what the rest of them will do to me if I get even one of them arrested for harassment or anything like that?" Novak's voice was full of fear; as if even talking about the mafia terrified him.

"It was just a question, Novak. Calm down…" Andelko placed a hand on the other man's shoulder, the Serb relaxing visibly from the comforting touch.

"I'm sorry… I just… I'm so afraid of those mafia members… I wrote a song about it a couple weeks ago to try to ease my mind, but it didn't help…"

"Could I hear the song…?"

"Uh… Sure… Just… Be warned; the lyrics are a bit… different, compared to everything else I've written…"

Andelko followed Novak to the piano room, and the Serb placed himself on the piano bench, eyes scanning over the keys before he placed his hands on them. Andelko took a seat at the desk towards the side of the room, turning the chair to face Novak.

Novak took a deep breath, then began to play, hands playing towards the left side of the piano a dark-sounding melody.

"_Never meant for it to get this bad…_

_Like a schizophrenic on the streets,_

_I am mad… Oh so mad…"_

"_Never meant for this habit to turn to a fad,_

_Like a mouse in your trap,_

_I am mad… Oh so mad…"_

"_Help didn't come in time,_

_The cash never rolled in,_

_Mistakes never fix themselves,_

_But I'll go all-in."_

"_Painful card game with lives,_

_Knife stabbing through skin,_

_Twisted inside,_

_Then pulled from within." _The chorus definitely set this song apart from Novak's typical lyrics.

"_Never meant for it to be this harsh…_

_Like a drop of blood in the grass,_

_I'm not there… Oh, not there…"_

"_Never meant for my debt to be as thick as a marsh,_

_Like a bullet through heart,_

_I'm not there… Oh, not there…"_

"_Help didn't come in time,_

_The cash never rolled in,_

_Mistakes never fix themselves,_

_But I'll go all-in."_

"_Painful card game with lives,_

_Knife stabbing through skin,_

_Twisted inside,_

_Then pulled from within."_

"_Painful card game with lies,_

_Knife stabbing through this,_

_Toss me aside,_

_A death to dismiss,_

_Oh, a death to dismiss…_

_Oh, a debt to dismiss…"_

Andelko sat in awe at the incredible lyrics he had just heard. Novak, a seemingly innocent man, thought incapable of writing a violent-sounding song, had proved Andelko wrong. The Croatian man had thought Novak couldn't write such a thing as he had; the Serb had openly stated in a previous show that he didn't like to bring negativity into his music, but what was this song? Surely, it was negative.

Novak sighed and turned around on the piano bench, looking to Andelko.

"I told you it was different…" He said.

"… Are you planning on putting that onto an album?" Andelko asked. Novak shook his head.

"No… Never. I couldn't put that kind of song out in public; not with what it describes."

"I can understand that… It describes death, and…" Andelko sighed, shaking his head in confusion. "Novak, that just… describes getting killed… It scares me that you'd write about your own death…"

"I will die if I don't pay off my debt… Those mafia members are fed up with me… It's been six years since I loaned that money from them. I'm lucky they didn't kill me a long time ago."

"I guess so… but God, I don't even want to think of ever seeing you as a patient in the ER…"

"If I don't get this debt paid, that's where I'm going to end up… And if things don't go well there, I guess the grave is the next place I'd end up."

"Novak, can we get off this subject? I don't… I don't want to think about you dying, or even getting hurt."

"Why don't you head on home, Andy…? You can get some more sleep, and get things done at your place."

"I think I will head home… I'll talk to you later, Novak." The Croatian stood and walked over to the Serb, hugging the man tightly and giving him a small peck on the cheek. He then exited the apartment, heading to his car. He got in, and soon found himself at his home, doing some minor chores.

As he put some dishes in his dishwasher, his cell phone rang. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone, looking at the caller ID. He brought the phone up to his ear, answering it.

"Hey Liz."

"_Morning Andy. What're you up to today?"_

"Not much. Got home from Novak's about a half hour ago. Doing some chores at the moment."

"_Pavla and I were wondering if you wanted to go out to dinner tonight. Her and I are both off work."_

"Sounds fine by me. What time?"

"_Around six would be good. Pavla gets off work at four, and I get off at five."_

"Sounds good. Where were you two planning on eating?"

"_There's a new seafood restaurant opening up today. I don't remember what it's called; Pavla knows though."_

"Do you want to meet up at the restaurant or…?"

"_Pavla is coming to my place to meet up with me; would you care to stop by my house around, say… five-thirty?"_

"Sure. Sounds like a plan."

"_Alright. Thanks Andy. I'll see you then."_

"You're welcome, Liz. See you later."

"_Bye."_

Andelko hung up the phone and put it back in his pocket, sighing slightly and smiling to himself. It felt good to have free time to spend. He couldn't remember the last time he went out to eat with friends at an actual restaurant.

Going through the day, Andelko found himself going somewhat stir-crazy. He had cleaned his house from top to bottom, and done just about every chore he possibly could. He didn't find himself tired out at all, so he watched television for a while until it was about time to go to Elizibeta's.

When he arrived at Elizibeta's home, he was greeted at the door by not Liz, but Pavla.

"Hey Andelko." She said with a smile, opening the door wider for him to come in. "Liz is talking on the phone with a friend from Hungary right now, so we have a little bit before we're going to head out."

"Ah. So how was work today, Pavla?" Andelko asked as he entered the home.

"It was alright. Not very busy, which is why a lot of us got off work earlier than usual."

"Why do the easy days always come when I'm off work? Watch, it'll be like this for the next three weeks, then when I come back; bam, ten people in the ER."

"I doubt it'll be like that. We'll get a tough day here soon, I'm sure. And when it comes, Antonio will be pushing us the ER to it's limits like he always does."

"You'd think he would get the point that people just can't work as endless of hours as he assigns. It's crazy how much the trauma team works…"

"Yeah, no kidding… And without you for the next three weeks, the ER will be struggling."

"I'm shocked that Antonio hasn't promoted you to doing actual work. Reception just isn't your thing."

"I know, right? I'd love to get back to actually working in the ER."

"Yeah, then you could replace Andy here for the time being." Elizibeta cut in as she descended down the stairs. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind having another woman on the trauma team."

"I wouldn't mind having anyone extra on the trauma team. The more hands we have to save patients, the better." Andelko stated.

"Yeah, no kidding… Well, you two ready to go?"

Pavla and Andelko nodded, and the three headed out to Pavla's SUV. Andelko sat in the back seat, while Pavla got in the driver's seat, and Elizibeta in the passenger.

As they drove, they got stuck in a traffic jam due to a car accident. Police were directing traffic, while firefighters worked to get to the driver of what seemed to be the car with the most damage.

"Oh my God… Oh my God, that's Zlatko! That's Zlatko they're trying to get out of the car!" Elizibeta exclaimed.

"Wh-What?" Andelko looked to the mangled wreckage, and sure enough, the firemen were pulling Zlatko from the twisted metal.

"Oh my Lord…" Pavla muttered, pulling over to the side of the street. A police officer walked over to them as they got out of their vehicle.

"Excuse me; what're you doing?" The officer asked.

"That's Zlatko Pilav; we're coworkers of his. We work at Saint Vargas' hospital. Let us help." Elizibeta said.

"I'm afraid I can't allow that." The cop replied. Once the firefighters had Zlatko on the ground, paramedics rushed in, checking vitals.

"Get the defibrillator! There's no pulse!" One shouted. The other rushed to the ambulance, getting the defibrillator. Without care to what the police man had said, both Liz and Andelko hurried over. The paramedics looked to them.

"Doctor Begovich and Doctor Hedervary; thank the Gods you're here. Help us out here." One said, recognizing the two doctors. One of the paramedics hurried and got them some latex gloves so that they could try to bring Zlatko back, despite the fact that he currently showed no signs of life.

They shocked him with the defibrillator multiple times, and were about to give up, when finally, Zlatko's heart began beating once again. The two trauma team doctors worked to stop the profuse bleeding coming from Zlatko's head and chest. The Bosnian doctor awoke in mid-procedure, opening his eyes slightly and letting out a choked cry; he was obviously in some serious pain.

"Zlatko, just relax. Andelko and I are here to help. We aren't going to lose you."

Zlatko coughed and cried out again, hands tightening into fists. The man tried to speak, but it was in very broken Bosnian, which no one could understand. Motorists passing by stared in horror and people on foot gasped and watched at Zlatko's writhing in agony as he was put onto a stretcher. Andelko and Elizibeta disposed of their latex gloves in the ambulance.

"I'm going to go back to the hospital with Zlatko. You and Pavla can do what you want; I'll call you and update you on his condition, alright?" Elizibeta said.

"Of course. See you soon, Liz. Good luck." Andelko replied as He hopped out of the back of the ambulance. The truck drove off once the doors were closed, sirens blaring, objective to get to the hospital before Zlatko succumbed to his wounds again.

Andelko sighed and ran ungloved hands through his hair, shaking his head. Pavla approached him.

"You alright, Andelko…?" She asked. The Croatian silently walked over to the Slovenian woman's car, leaning against it, teeth grit, head pounding. He couldn't believe what he had seen; Zlatko Pilav, a Bosnian man who never deserved to be hurt, had been dead mere minutes ago. They had managed to bring him back, but the agonizing cries of pain had imprinted themselves into Andelko's mind.

The Croat finally broke.

He let his pent up stress out through tears and sobs; he slid to the ground, curling up and crying, the blood stains from Zlatko on the knees of his pants not bothering him as much as the sight of the fire crews working to clean the blood off of the ground where the Bosnian had been laying with spray hoses.

Pavla made attempts to calm him, but it was futile. Andelko had reached the breaking point. He liked to help people, but seeing someone that he knew so well in such horrid condition, dead on the ground after being pulled from an unidentifiable wreckage, was just far too much for him to handle.

It took about a half hour for Andelko to calm down. Pavla took him back to Elizibeta's, and ushered him to the living room, where she made him lay down on the couch.

"Just relax, Andelko… Relax…" She said, trying to coax the man into calmness.

"H-How could that h-have just happened like that? T-To Zlatko o-of all people, Pavla?" Andelko stammered.

"Shh, Andelko… Calm down…" The Slovene woman placed her hand on Andelko's, trying to comfort him. The Croat grasped her hand tightly.

"G-God, Pavla, I need help…" He choked out. Pavla sighed and sat the man up, wrapping her arms around him tightly.

"Don't worry, Andelko… I'm here for you… Just calm down… Calm down… Smirite se…" She repeated those words for what seemed like forever. Soon, Andelko managed to act upon the words, and cease his crying.

"I-I'm sorry…" He stated quietly.

"Don't be sorry, Andelko… You're extremely stressed, and can't handle seeing and hearing that kind of thing, especially from someone like Zlatko…"

Andelko nodded a bit. "That's why I'm on vacation… I-I've reached my breaking point…"

"Precisely… Now, I think a smart thing for you to do is maybe go back to Croatia for a little while. Get back to your roots… Maybe it'll help you more than anything would here in the states."

"But… I haven't been to Croatia in God knows how long… I don't even know Croatian anymore…"

"I'm sure you'll remember basics if you're there for a while."

'I-I guess…"

Pavla smiled a bit, but was startled when Andelko's cell phone rang loudly. Andelko chuckled slightly and pulled his cell phone from his pocket.

"It's Liz…" He muttered, clearing his throat before answering the call. "Hey Liz."

"_Andelko, how're you doing…?"_

"Okay, I guess… How's Zlatko?"

"_He died on us two times in mid-procedure, but we think now he's staying with us for good. As it turns out, he fell asleep at the wheel and went head on into a parked car… Antonio is giving him the next three months off of work because of this event."_

"Well, you would only expect that kind of break from work for crashing like he did… What was the extent of his injuries?"

"_A collapsed lung, broken ribs, a lot of internal lacerations, a severe concussion… It's a "you name it, he broke it" kind of situation."_

"But he's alive, correct?"

"_Alive, and being observed in the ICU. I have a good feeling that he'll recover. There could be some amnesia when he comes to, but that's expected with what kind of head trauma he has."_

"Yeah… Well, thanks for keeping me updated. Are you going to stay at the hospital?"

"_Just for the rest of the night. I want to be sure that Zlatko gets the care he needs. He's part of this ER family, you know? We can't lose our quiet guy."_

"I know… Should Pavla and I head home, since you won't be back?"

"_You can spend the night at my place if you'd like. There's two perfectly good couches in the living room. They're actually pretty comfortable."_

"Yeah, I know. I've been on one for the past hour."

"_So what happened once I left in the ambulance?"_

"… I had a mental breakdown."

"_Seriously?"_

"Just ask Pavla… She's the one who comforted me."

"_I'm so sorry, Andy. Is there anything I can do?"_

"You have a computer somewhere, right?"

"_Of course. It's upstairs in a separate room. Why do you ask?"_

"I'm booking a flight to Croatia."

"_You're going back to Croatia?"_

"Just for a week or so. To get in touch with my roots. It's for the best that I get out of the states, you know?"

"_I can understand that… Are you going to go to Vukovar?"_

"Probably. I have some friends in Vukovar that could help me out with getting around and such. I may just get a flight to Zagreb, and have one of them pick me up there. It's been a long time since I've seen any of my old friends, or even talked to them… Wonder how they'll react to me suddenly going back to Croatia for a week or so, when I've forgotten the language."

"_I'm sure they'll be alright with you. They know English, right?"_

"Yeah. But I doubt it's exactly great English."

"_They can help you with your Croatian, and you can help them with their English. Fair trade, right?"_

Andelko chuckled. "I suppose."

"_Well, I'll let you go look for flights to Croatia and get in contact with your old friends. I'm going to check on Zlatko."_

"Alright. I'll talk to you later, Liz."

"_Bye Andy."_

Andelko hung up the phone and sighed, putting it back in his pocket.

"Want to come help me find a flight to Zagreb?" He asked Pavla, who nodded and stood. The two ventured upstairs, and soon located the computer. It was in a neatly-organized room, with filing cabinets against one of the walls and neat stacks of papers on the computer desk.

"What is she, a lawyer in her spare time?" Pavla asked.

"For all we know, she could be running the Hungarian mafia." Andelko replied, chuckling. The Croat sat down in the computer chair, turning on the computer with the press of a button.

"Pavla, do some searching for me while I try to get a hold of a few friends." He said, getting up from the chair and walking over to the window, grabbing his cell phone. He looking through his contacts, calling a few numbers. Finally, someone picked up.

"_Zdravo?"_

"Zdravo, Blago. It's Andelko Begovich; you remember me?"

"_Andelko Begovich… Vukovar survivor, right?"_

"Yep. Long time no talk."

"_It's good hearing you, friend! How is you?"_

"I'm alright, Blago. I'm going to be visiting Croatia here soon, but I can't get a hold of anyone who could possibly help me around the country. I don't remember a lot of the Croatian language; I've lived in the United states for so long that I can't recall a lot of it."

"_So you needs me to guide you around home and help you remember Croatian?"_

"Yes. I'm going to end up getting a flight to Zagreb; do you think it's possible that you could meet me somewhere in the Zagreb Airport?"

"_Sure. Just gives me call when you have times for flights figured out."_

"Alright. Thanks Blago."

"_It's no problem, friend. I'll talk to you soon."_

"Talk to you soon, Blago." Andelko hung up and sighed a bit. "I can still rely on Blago for things like this, but damn is his English hard not to laugh at."

"Is it pretty bad?" Pavla asked.

"Not as bad as I expected, but it's still funny. Anyways, any luck on finding any flights?"

"Well, the closest international airport is Detroit, obviously… but there's nothing out straight from Detroit directly to Zagreb. You can get a flight to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, the from there you can go directly to Zagreb Airport."

"Going from Detroit to Paris, then to Zagreb? That's going to cost me an arm and a leg."

"Yeah, but it's all I can find, really. It's 1,638 dollars for a flight tomorrow, and then from Paris to Zagreb is 722 dollars…That's 2360 dollars for both flights."

"Holy mother of God, that's a lot of money… But, I think I can deal with it. I don't spend all that much money, and I've got plenty saved up."

"You'll also need extra money that you can get traded in to Kuna for things like food and such… Kuna is still the currency in Croatia, right?"

"Yeah. It won't be problem for me to take this trip. And I'm sure Blago will be nice enough to pay for some things; if I remember, he was the generous one out of my Croatian friends."

"What were you in your group of friends?"

"The smart one."

"Ha. I laugh."

"Yes, yes you do."

"So who is this Blago guy exactly?"

"He's Blago Bilobrk. He's pretty damn rich from what I understand; runs a vineyard nowadays somewhere just outside of Dakovo. He lived in Vukovar as neighbors with my family until 1990 when they left for Dakovo. He's a generous guy, but you would think that instead of giving his money away, he would invest in some more English lessons."

"Blago Bilobrk? Interesting name, to say the least."

"Yeah."

"Well, anyways, here's the computer back. Type in your information, pay for the flights, etcetera, etcetera…" Pavla said, getting up from the computer chair. While Andelko went about booking his flights, the Slovenian woman sat on the floor against the wall beside the desk.

"How long has it been since you've been back to Slovenia, Pavla?" Andelko asked.

"Too long. I miss all my friends and family there… but until I can get a break from work, won't be able to go back for a visit."

"I should talk to Antonio once I get back to work, and tell him to either A; promote you, or B; give you a week off so you can go back to Slovenia for a while."

"How about both?" Pavla said, laughing a bit.

"That'd be asking too much of the poor Spaniard."

"Yeah… By the way, shouldn't you call Novak and let him know that you're leaving for Croatia tomorrow morning?"

"I'll do it later. I'm going to get this done first. Priorities here."

"You have a priority list?"

"Not exactly a list. Just a common sense of things I should get done before others."

"Oh my; you have common sense? It's a miracle!" Pavla exclaimed jokingly, throwing her arms into the air.

"Don't make me throw a shoe at you, Pavla."

"Who am I, George W. Bush?"

"Yes. Yes, you are."

"Great. I was president of the United States, and I didn't even know it."

"We ought to tell Liz that."

"Tell Liz what?"

"That you were president, and didn't even know it."

"Think she'll get a kick out of it?"

"Knowing Liz; yes."


	7. Chapter 7

Sitting at the gate, waiting for his flight to Paris to be ready to be boarded, was rather dull for Andelko. Though there were a decent amount of people heading to Paris, he had no friends or family on this flight, and he was going somewhere he didn't know at all.

It was going to be a long flight from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport. Something along the lines of an eight hour flight, and then from Paris to Zagreb was about an hour and a half flight, minus the extra hour Andelko would spend in Paris-Charles de Gaulle waiting for his flight to be boarded.

It was around eight in the morning, and his flight was scheduled to take off at 8:45. He had time to kill, but there was nothing to do. At least, nothing that interested him.

He sighed and dug his phone out of his pocket, deciding to make a call to Novak to try to kill time. He dialed the number, and was surprised when the Serbian answered.

"_Hello?"_

"Hey Novak. It's Andelko."

"_Good morning… What're you up to?"_

"Sitting around the airport in Detroit. I have nothing to do until my flight is ready to be boarded. It'll be about another forty-five minutes."

"_How long is your flight from Detroit to Paris?"_

"Around eight hours. I'm probably just going to sleep the entire time."

"_That shoulder be easy for you."_

"Speaking of sleep, did I wake you?"

"_No, I've been up since seven."_

"Why?"

"_I got a call at six, and you won't believe who was on the other line."_

"Who?"

"_The owner of the piano shop I worked at in Belgrade. He now works for a record label company, and wants to sign a recording contract with me to release a second album."_

"Really? That's great, Novak!"

"_I know! I'm going to be heading to Vienna next month to work with Mr. Edelstein on the new album. He also told me that we may film a music video for Praznina. Things are really looking up for my career."_

"Yeah, they are. So this Mr. Edelstein guy; this is the guy you worked for before you became a soldier?"

"_Yes. Roderich Edelstein. He wasn't just my boss back then, but he also taught me how to play piano."_

"I suppose you'll have to thank him for a lot then, huh?"

"_Yeah, I know. That's the least I can do is thank him for helping me out so much."_

"So for this new album, Novak, you're going to have to come up with some new stuff, huh?"

"_Yeah, but only a few brand new. I have quite a few songs that I've written in between the time that I released my last album and now."_

"True. So what do you think you're going to base this album around? Is there a song or a message you're thinking about basing it around?"

"_I'm not all too sure. That's something I'm going to talk with Mr. Edelstein about."_

"I see…"

"_So who are you going to be staying with in Croatia?"_

"An old friend of mine from Vukovar. I haven't seen him in forever."

"_Who is this old friend, might I ask?"_

"Blago Bilobrk. He owns a vineyard in Dakovo."

"_You aren't going to be getting drunk with him, are you?"_

"I don't drink, Novak. The worst thing I do is smoke occasionally, and that's extremely rare for me to do."

"_You smoke?"_

"Like I said, it's extremely rare for me to do. I used to be a regular smoker, but about two years ago I managed to quit. Every once in a while though, I can't help but need that crutch."

"_So you quit about a year into your medical career?"_

"Yeah. I found it extremely hypocritical that I'm an ER Nurse, practically preaching health, but I did one of the most unhealthy things out there. Nicotine is addicting, which is why it took me forever to kick it to the curb once and for all."

"_I, despite being a Serb and a crippled man, haven't smoked cigarettes since I was a teenager. Mr. Edelstein hated me for always smelling like cigarette smoke, so he made me quit. Within a month he had me down to one cigarette a day. Then finally, I just up and quit. My lungs probably thank Mr. Edelstein every day for making me quit smoking."_

"This is off the subject of smoking, but so you drink a lot, Nova? You don't seem like the kind of guy to, but you can never be too sure."

"_Again, Mr. Edelstein helped me with that. I used to drink a lot as a teen, and every time I showed up to work with a hangover, he would play loud classical music just to make it worse. Within a few weeks he managed to get me to stop drinking. If you can imagine having a hangover and having to listen to Chopin and Mozart early in the morning, you'd understand me forcing myself to stop drinking."_

"I bet it was hell."

"_It was worse than hell; trust me."_

Andelko chuckled. "You should get some sleep, Novak."

"_Yeah… Give me a call when you're in Paris, alright?"_

"Of course. I'll talk to you later, Novak."

"_Bye."_

"Bye." Andelko hung up his phone and turned it off, shoving it in his pocket. He waited a while, and soon, his plane was boarded.

He slept during the flight of course, and awoke in time to witness a bit of the scenery of France before the inevitable landing of the plane in Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport. When he exited the plane, he walked slowly to retrieve his luggage from the luggage claim area. Taking out his cell phone and turning it on, he made a call to Novak like he had promised.

"_Hello?"_

"Hey Novak. It's Andy."

"_How was your flight?"_

"I was asleep for the most part, but woke up maybe thirty minutes before the plane landed. The scenery over France was beautiful."

"_I bet it was. I'm sure you'll enjoy going from Paris to Zagreb though, huh?"_

"I'm staying awake for the hour and a half it takes to get from Paris to Zagreb. I've got I think an hour to get my luggage, get my ticket checked, get my luggage tossed on the right plane, and get to my gate."

"_Well, then get off the phone and get those things done. You can call me once you're waiting at your gate."_

"Alright. I'll talk to you soon, Novak."

"_Talk to you soon, Andy."_

Andelko hung up his phone once again, just in time to grab his luggage and be on his way to get his ticket for his flight to Zagreb verified. After going through the processes at the airport, he found himself waiting at his gate with time to spare to call Novak. He called the Serb like he had said he would, and talked with him for a little while, before hanging up to board his flight to Zagreb.

Sitting in his seat, he felt his heart flutter at the thought of seeing his homeland after so long. He was really going to be in Croatia after all those years of living in the United States.

He buckled himself in and stared out the window at the bustling airport, only to drift off in thought about Croatia. He honestly never thought he'd ever go back to the country he was born in, let alone go back to Vukovar.

For the hour and a half long flight, Andelko stared and pondered, wondering what awaited him back in his true home. When he arrived in Zagreb, he walked out of his gate and went to retrieve his luggage. He headed out of the luggage claim area, taking out his cell phone an making a call to Blago.

"_Hello friend!" _Blago answered excitedly.

"Hey Blago. I'm in Zagreb. Where are you?"

"_I'm in Zagreb Airport as well. Where is you?"_

"Just outside of luggage claim."

"_I'll meet you there; stay where you is."_

"Alright." Andelko hung up his phone and placed it in his pocket, looking around for any sign of Blago. He chuckled to himself; how much had Blago's appearance change since he had last seen him? It had been quite a long time.

A man wearing jeans and a dark green jacket approached him, messy black hair combed away from his eyes. A patch of facial hair resided on the man's chin, under the grin that Andelko recognized from so long ago. It was Blago Bilobrk.

"Andelko, friend, long times no see!" Blago exclaimed, hugging the other Croatian tightly.

"It has been a long time, Blago. How have you been doing?" Andelko asked, smiling.

"Very good, Andelko. Come; we chat more on way to Vukovar." Blago said with a grin, leading Andelko out of the airport to a black luxury car; an Audi, from what Andelko knew about cars.

He and Blago chatted about just about everything on their drive from Zagreb to Vukovar; on the way, they stopped by Blago's vineyard in Dakovo.

As they walked along the vast rows of growing grapevines, they conversed quietly about life after the Croatian War.

"My family never really goes by Vukovar nows. It just too much to handle, knowing what happened there." Blago said.

"I can understand why they won't go back. You guys are living well here in Dakovo; what's there to return to in Vukovar but memories of those you'll never see again?… I for one am shocked that I'm even in Croatia once again, after losing my father in 1991 in the Vukovar Massacre."

"Oh, that's right, you did lose your father in Vukovar, didn't you? What abouts your mother? Is she still arounds?"

"No. She died in a factory accident when I was a teenager in the United States. Her death is actually what made me want to go into the medical profession."

"That's tragic." Blago simply stated. Andelko nodded a bit.

"It is, but at least I was independent enough to take care of myself on my own. I was sixteen at the time, and had a job… So I managed to convince a landlord that I was able to pay for an apartment, and I lived like that until I graduated… Then I lived with a friend, who helped me pay for college. He was a good guy… he died a week before I graduated from nursing school. It was… a hard blow to me, but I took it as motivation to continue doing what I had set my mind to."

"Which was…?"

"To become a trauma nurse and save the lives of those who were on the brink of death."

"… You're a very kinds man. I'm glad to sees that you've come so far in your life. Me, I just inherited this vineyard without much need for it… My family's always been in this business."

"What did you want to be when you were a teenager?"

"A soldier. But… Seeing that I have three younger sisters to take cares of with the money I have from this vineyard… I don't haves time to volunteer."

"I can understand that. How are your sisters, by the way?"

"They are doing wells. Ana-Marija is in he last year of high school, while the other two are in their second and first years. Anja and Anita both tell me thats they want to be chefs. I guess I'm stuck with this vineyard forever then, huh Andelko?"

Andelko laughed. "Yeah, I guess you are, Blago."

Blago looked ahead at the large house stationed at the end of the vineyard, where a car had just parked and honked at the two walking along the edge of the fields.

"Would you likes to see my sisters? Their English is better than mines, and you haven't ever met thems in person. You've heard of them, they've heard of yous; what do you say?" Blago questioned.

"Sounds fine by me. Let's go." Andelko answered, smiling at the other Croat. They walked to the house, where the three girls were. Ana-Marija greeted Blago at the door with a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"How're you today, brother?" The brown-haired woman asked, smiling.

"Greats. I won't be here at home a lot since I have Andelko heres," Blago motioned to the Trauma Nurse beside him. "But I think you can hold your owns with your sisters."

"Is this the Andelko from Vukovar you've told me about before?" Ana-Marija questioned.

"Yeah. Andelko Begovich, survivor of the Vukovar Massacre. Say hello, Andelko." Blago said, looking to Andelko, who smiled and offered his hand to shake to Ana-Marija.

"It's nice to meet you, Ana-Marija." He stated. The woman shook his hand firmly.

"It's nice to meet you too, Andelko. And please, call me Ana." She said, smiling.

"Alright. I wasn't sure, considering your younger sister's name is so similar."

"It's alright. Please, come sit down in the living room." Ana-Marija led Andelko to the said living room, where he sat down on a couch. Ana-Marija and Blago sat on the couch across from him, smiles on their faces.

"So you're from Vukovar, huh?" Ana asked.

"Yeah. Born there in '83, and lived there until '92. From there I went to the United States, and have been living there since."

"Do you have any family there, or was it just to get out of Croatia after the war?"

"My mother and I just wanted to get out of Croatia after my father was killed in the massacre. We had nothing left in Vukovar. We came to the States and tried to make a decent living… My mother died when I was sixteen in a factory accident, which is what motivated me to become a Trauma Nurse."

"So you're a nurse? You must get paid well."

Andelko nodded. "I get paid decently. I have nice house that I can always afford to pay for, I have a decent car that I can pay for… Insurance bills and everything get paid on time, and I have cash to spare in the end. I never really get out much since I work a whole hell of a lot, but I always have that financial security that a lot of people don't have."

"How did you manage to get the time off work to come to Croatia?"

"I didn't do anything good, that's for sure."

"What did you do?"

"I had been working so much that my body and mind were at their limits… I fainted in the midst of an operation. Woke up in a hospital bed of my own… My boss gave me three weeks off of work. I didn't actually thing of coming here to Croatia on my own. My coworker Pavla was the one to suggest it to me after I had a sort of… mental breakdown."

"A mental breakdown? What caused that?"

"I was with Pavla and another coworker of mine, Elizibeta, heading to a restaurant to eat… We got stuck in a slight traffic jam because of a crash that happened… When we passed the wreckage of a car, we recognized the man that the firemen were pulling out of it… He was a man on my Trauma Team; Zlato Pilav… He's always been really quiet, and never deserved to be hurt like he was… When we realized it was Zlatko, we pulled over and got out of our car… The paramedics at the scene had called for a defibrillator since Zlatko didn't have a pulse…"

"A policeman tried to stop Elizibeta and I from getting to our coworker, but we disregarded him and went to assist the paramedics, who knew us from the hospital. We managed to bring Zlatko back to life, and he woke up in the midst of us working on him… He cried out and spoke in what I think was Bosnian… It haunts me even to this moment… When they had taken Zlatko on an ambulance, I returned to the car we had drove there in and… I broke down. I couldn't handle the stress, you know?"

"Wow… That's tough. Don't think I could deals with that." Blago said. "You're tough guy. Always have been. You survived Vukovar, lived on your own whens you were sixteen, got throughs high school and college despite all your losses, and survives a mental breakdown. Andelko Begovich, you never ceases to amaze me."

Andelko chuckled. "I'm not so great."

"Say, Ana, where are Anja and Anita?" Blago asked Ana-Marija.

"They went upstairs to do their homework." Ana-Marija responded.

"I will be right back. I want them to meet Andelko." Blago stood and headed up a flight of spiral stairs across the room, soon returning with two teenage girls following him.

Blago smiled and presented the two girls to Andelko. "Andelko, meet Anja and Anita. Anja and Anita, meet Andelko Begovich."

Andelko stood and shook the hands of the two teenage girls, smiling. Anja was the older of the two, and was slightly taller, with dark brown hair. Her sister, Anita, had lighter hair, and seemed to be more timid than her older sibling.

"This man is not onlys a Vukovar survivor, but he is a survivor of many hardships. And he's a nice guy too. So humble for a man who's been throughs hell." Blago said.

"It's nice to meet you, sir." Anja told Andelko, who chuckled.

"No need to call me 'sir'. Just call me Andelko."

"Alright. I just wanted to be polite; some people take offense to not being called sir or madam."

"True. Being polite can get you far in life. I would know; just being polite gave me a job and a home when I was your age."

"Really?"

"I lived on my own when I was sixteen. I didn't have anyone to take care of me but myself."

"Wow… Can I ask why?"

"When I went to the United States with my mother after the Croatian War, I was nine years old. Seven years later, my mother died in an accident at the factory she worked at. I had no family to go to; not even a cousin or an uncle or anyone. I'm the last of my family… but anyways, I managed to get a job after she died, and got a meager apartment with the money I made off of my job. It was hard at first, but I got used to it."

"Do you plan on passing on your last name? I mean, if you're the last in your family… wouldn't you want it to survive?"

"Sadly, that's not going to happen unless I suddenly turn straight. I'm gay, so I'm obviously not going to pass on my surname."

"Oh, that's right! I forgot that you were gay, Andelko." Blago sad, chuckling. "Which brings up the question; who's the lucky man to be yours?"

"I'd rather not say. Considering who I'm with, I may get killed for even mentioning him in Croatia."

"It can't be that bad."

Andelko sighed. "His name's Novak. He's a Serb."

The shocked faces of the four other Croats in the room were enough to make Andelko uneasy.

"Okay… So it is that bad." Blago said.

"He's really not a bad guy though. He's not the stereotypical Croat-hating Serbian."

"Does he haves the stereotypical looks of a Serbian?"

"Not at all. He's a natural blonde. Green eyes, too. You would think he was from a more northern country."

"Really? What's he do for a livings?"

"He's a pianist, though he used to be a soldier until he lost his leg."

"Lost his leg? He hads an amputation?"

"Well… More his leg got severed by a machine and he was forced to leave the military."

"Ouch. That's got to hurt."

"From what he described to me when he told me the story of how he lost his leg, I'm sure it did."

"… Well, my opinion of Serbs is definitely differents now. You, being a guy who survived Vukovar, getting with a Serb… Stuns me, but heys, it has been a long times since the war."

"Speaking of Vukovar, shall we get going? I'd like to spend as much time as possible there… I haven't been back in my hometown in so long."

"Sures. Ana, take care of Anja and Anita while I'm gones. I'll be back later; I may spend some times in Vukovar just hanging around and helping Andelko out. This lug has forgotten his own language." Blago shoved Andelko slightly, laughing. Andelko chuckled.

"It's what I get for living in the United States for so long." He replied.

"See you when you get home, Blago. Drive careful." Ana-Marija said to Blago, who nodded and hugged the eldest sister. He then hugged his two younger sisters before heading to the door. Andelko followed, exiting with the other Croatian. Soon they were on the road once again, heading to the place Andelko hadn't seen in twenty years.

When they arrived in Vukovar, they pulled up to a hotel.

"You're going to be staying here all week, rights?" Blago asked. Andelko nodded.

"I'll pay for the hotel then. And I'll give you some Kuna to spend here; it's the least I could do for yous considering what you've gone through."

"You don't need to so something like that for me, Blago…"

"I insist. Come on, let's get you a room."

The two got out of the car, heading inside the rather nice hotel. Blago smiled and greeted the receptionist in Croatian, which Andelko tried to pay attention to and tried to understand, though it was hard. He wanted to kick himself for not speaking Croatian for so long.

Once a room had been paid for, Blago handed Andelko the room's key and led him down the halls to his room.

"Hotels here in Vukovar are expensive, Blago. I feel bad to have you doing all this for me…" Andelko muttered as they got to the room.

"Think of it as a favor for my family leaving you guys to suffer in Vukovar." Blago said as the other Croat unlocked the door and entered the room. Andelko set his luggage beside the bed and sighed.

"You guys were the smart ones. You didn't listen to bombs and guns all day for three months, and then some." He retorted, shaking his head slightly.

"Shall we walks around town a bit, Andelko? Find a place to eat or something?" Blago asked, changing the subject off the touchy subject of the war. Inevitably though, memories of what happened in the early nineties would be spurred on by the living war and massacre monument that was Vukovar.

"Sounds good to me." Andelko replied, following the other man out of the room and furthermore the hotel.

As they walked down the sidewalk, Andelko glanced around, always spotting occasional holes in the walls of the buildings from bullets that had been fired twenty years ago.

"Hm… Blago, the cemetery is within walking distance, correct?" He questioned.

"Yes. Do you want to go there?" Blago replied.

"… I want to see my father's grave. He's buried there. I've never seen his grave before seeing that I haven't been back to Croatia in twenty years."

"Well, let's go. Do you wants to stop at a flower shop or something so you can puts flowers on his grave?"

"That would be nice."

After about a half hour, the two arrived at the cemetery, Andelko with a small bouquet of flowers in his hand to put on his father's grave.

He and Blago slowly walked along the paths, Andelko staring somberly at the graves as they passed by them. Eventually, they came to a simple rectangular gravestone made of marble. The words _Ljubomir Begovich _were engraved, along with the man's birthdate _April 7__th__, 1960, _and simply the month and year of his death, _October_ _1991._ Andelko hadn't been sure that his father had been killed the day the Serbians had captured him, and neither had his mother. That was why the death date said a month and year instead of a complete date.

Andelko knelt down in front of the grave and placed the flowers in front of the marble rectangle, staring at the name engraved with a sorrow in his eyes.

"I can remember watching him get dragged away… I had hidden in a closet with my mother, and was peeking out of the crack in the door… My father stood in the living room with a gun… and when the JNA entered the house, he tried to defend himself, but… they shot the gun out of his hand and… they dragged him out… They asked him where his family was, and he said that they had been killed in previous days…" Andelko breathed in shakily. "They believed him, and didn't search the house… I-It's because of my father that my mother and I survived…"

"He's a hero in his own sense." Blago said, crouching down and placing a hand on Andelko's back. Andelko smiled slightly before reaching up and wiping emerging tears from his eyes.

"I will never forget that day…" Andelko muttered. He reached forward with a hand and brushed his fingers gently across the name on the grave.

"… _Ljubomir Begovich… Otac… z-zašto…?_" Andelko couldn't restrain the sorrow in his voice, and let the tears fall from his eyes, starting to cry for his father. These emotions had been restrained for twenty years, locked away in Andelko's heart. He finally let it out; those feelings he had shut away for all those years, letting the tears fall onto the grass covering his father's grave.

"…_Zašto…?"_


	8. Chapter 8

The days in Vukovar seemed to pass all too quickly, and before Andelko knew it, he was sitting in Zagreb Airport, waiting for his flight to be boarded. Blago sat next to him, chatting with the other Croat to pass the time.

"So what're you going to do once you're back ins the United States?"

Andelko shrugged. "I don't really know… Hm… I'm going to make a phone call real quick to a friend in the states."

"Alright." Blago said. Andelko pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, dialing a number and holding the phone up to his ear. After a few rings, it was answered.

"_Hello?"_

"Hey Liz, it's Andelko."

"_Oh, hey Andy. You still in Croatia?"_

"Yeah. I'm sitting in Zagreb Airport right now though; I'm leaving today."

"_I see. I'm at work right now, but the ER is empty, so I'm just sitting around. What do you need?"_

"I need a ride from Detroit back home. You think you're up for it?"

"_Sure. You'll be in Detroit when exactly?"_

"Well, I have to fly from Zagreb to Paris, and then from Paris to Detroit, so… I'm going to take a guess and say ten to twelve hours before I'm in Detroit."

"_That gives me plenty of time. Let's see, it's 9:00 here, so… I'll be at the airport around, let's say, eight-ish?"_

"Fine by me. I'll be sure to give you a call when I get off the plane to make sure that you're there."

"_Sounds good. Oh, looks like we have a patient. I'll talk to you later, Andelko."_

"Bye."

Andelko hung up his phone and put it back in his pocket, sighing.

"I don't really want to leave here." He muttered. "One week doesn't make up for twenty years."

"You can always come backs and visit again. I'm just a phone calls away, Andelko." Blago replied, smiling at the other Croatian.

"Yeah… Thanks, Blago. Thanks for helping me out around here… Thanks for still being a friend to me, even after twenty years."

"It's no problems. Ah, I think your flight is boarding nows." Blago noted. Andelko stood and turned to his friend.

"Give me a hug, Blago. I don't know when I'll get a chance to see you again." He said. Blago chuckled and hugged Andelko, patting the mans back.

"You take it easy nows, alright?"

"Yeah, you too. See you next time I come around Hrvatska."

"See yous."

Andelko smiled slightly, hiding sadness from his friend, and headed onto the plane. Once in his seat, he sighed heavily, looking out the window at his homeland. His brown eyes stung with emerging tears; how he hated leaving this nation once again.

He managed to hold back the tears and keep them from rolling down his cheeks for the entire flight. By the time he had boarded his second flight in Paris, his sorrows of leaving his homeland had quelled slightly, and he was able to rest during the overseas flight back to the United States. He was awoken by a flight attendant when they got to the Detroit area and were just about to begin their descent down to the ground.

When the plane landed and passengers were permitted to exit the plane, he stood and walked down the isle to get out of the confined space of the aircraft. He stepped out into Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, rubbing the back of his neck slightly. Sleeping for so long on a plane wasn't the best of choices.

Yawning, the Croat retrieved his cell phone from his pocket, turning the device on and making a call to Elizibeta.

"_Hey Andy."_

"Hey, you at the airport?"

"_Yes, I am. Where do you want to meet up?"_

"I have to go get my bag from luggage claim…" Andelko paused to yawn. "I'm in Concourse A. I'm sure you'll be able to find me. I'll be the only man walking around half asleep."

Elizibeta laughed slightly. _"I'll see you in a bit, Andelko."_

"Yeah, see you in a bit…" Andelko hung up the phone and sighed, heading to the luggage claim area. Elizibeta was waiting for him, scrub-clad and smiling.

"How was your flight, Andy?" The brunette woman asked.

"I don't know. I was asleep up until a flight attendant woke me up." Andelko chuckled.

"Explains why you're so tired. Don't worry, you can sleep on the way back home."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I'm going to try to wake up a bit."

"And do what? It's 11:30 at night."

"Watch TV. Do something. I just slept for the majority of an eight hour flight. I don't need any more sleep." Andelko said as he grabbed his suitcase. He followed beside Elizibeta, heading to where she had parked her car.

While the two were on their way home from the Airport, they conversed quietly.

"So how was Croatia, anyways?" Liz questioned. Andelko sighed.

"So much has changed, but so much has stayed the same as well… In Vukovar… I visited my father's grave for the first time, twenty years after he had died. I mean, just looking around and seeing that the damage from the war was still there after so long… That was enough to get me emotional, but… When I visited his grave, the regrets I've been holding for the past twenty years just kind of… poured out, and… I feel like I've gained some kind of closure from letting it all out, you know?"

"Yeah. So what did you do other than visit your father's grave?"

"A lot of things, actually. Went out to eat at a few places, visited some stores… It's odd, I can remember a lot of the places from when I was a kid. It was nostalgic."

"I bet it was. Man, it's been seven years since I've been back to Hungary. I bet going back would be nostalgic, but that's nothing compared to the twenty years it took you to visit Croatia again."

"Whenever you get a decent break from work, you should go back to Hungary for a while. I'll tell you now, going back to the place you were born after more than a few years is refreshing."

"I've been meaning to get back to Hungary, but I don't think Antonio would take lightly that someone just out of college like me already wants a lengthy break to go to Europe."

"With the great work you've done in the ER, I honestly don't think he'll have a problem with it."

"I haven't done that much. I'm more of a drug-pushing, chart-reading, vital-checking assistant than an actual Trauma Nurse."

"I'd think not. You're a vital asset to the Trauma Team; you know just as much as the rest of us."

"I don't think so. You guys have experience, and know how to handle the pressure of having people's lives in your hands better than me."

"Nah. You've seen what too much pressure does to me, and I have three years of ER experience under my belt."

"But you've had the pressure of saving lives added on to regular stress."

"What do I have to be stressed about, other than the lives of the patients? Sure, I don't get enough sleep sometimes, but that's something I've gotten used to over the years."

"…"

"Honestly, Liz, I don't have anything outside of my career to be stressed about. My life, though tiring, is perfect. At least, in my eyes."

"I guess you're right… but you still have an advantage over me with your experience."

"Even so, you're still a great asset to the hospital's ER."

"Thanks…"

"You're welcome, Liz…" Andelko thought for a moment. "Oh, right! I still owe you from that bet we made." He said, reaching for his wallet in his back pocket.

"I almost forgot about that, Andelko." Elizibeta remarked, laughing. She accepted the fifty dollars from Andelko with ease, smirking. "I knew you two would be great together. He kiss you yet?"

Andelko's cheeks reddened and he nodded sheepishly. Elizibeta's eyes seemed to light up at the response, a grin forming on her face.

"How did it happen? Tell me all the details, Andy."

Andelko sighed. "I… don't remember exactly how it happened. It was after a show of his and… I was driving him home. I parked my car next to his duplex and… I don't remember in all what was said, but he grabbed my hand and said I was inspiring… And he leaned in and, well… he kissed me."

"What was it like for you? What was running through your head? Tell me honestly."

"I was in shock, but… It was nice. I don't think there's an exact word that would describe that first time we kissed. Blissfully hesitant, would be the closest phrase I can think of for a description…"

"What a contradiction."

"Yeah… No kidding."

Andelko, within a few hours, found himself sitting at home once again. It felt almost as if he had never gone to Croatia in the first place.

A few hours passed of pacing around with nothing to do, listening to songs on the radio set up in the living room. He was shocked though, when he heard the host over the radio speaking of something Andelko knew about.

"_This week's rising star has been decided by an online poll; a Serbian man named Novak Novkovic has gained incredible popularity over the past few months, his debut album going gold in the United States, and topping charts all over the world. He sings in both English and his native tongue of Serbian, with a voice described by fans as "emotionally driving" and "unforgettable". He plays concerts in the Midwest, seeing that's where his career started, but has told local media that he is planning on going on tour after releasing his second album. Here is one of his most popular songs, excuse me if I butcher the name. This is "Praznina"."_

Andelko smiled and listened closely to the song. He couldn't help but be happy; Novak's music was on the radio!

Time passed, and Andelko found himself awakening on the couch after passing out. He sighed and sat up, scratching his chin and glancing at the clock on the wall. It was almost noon already.

"Man… What time did I pass out at…?" He muttered, getting to his feet and walking over to the radio, which was still on the same radio station that he had been listening to. He shut off the device, then stretched a bit. He still had two weeks left in his vacation from work; what on Earth was there for him to do?

For a while, he meandered around his house, searching for something that could keep him occupied, eventually settling on reorganizing his bedroom closet. Going through the old clothes that had been hanging up, he smiled slightly when he found his first pair of scrubs he had received from St. Vargas'. It was a standard pair of light blue scrubs, worn out in various places from use. Not shockingly, the scrubs seemed like they would still fit Andelko. It had only been three years since he had started his nursing career, after all.

He sighed slightly, remembering the first day he had spent as a Trauma Nurse at St. Vargas'. It was the day that he had learned that he and Sadik Adnan were never going to get along.

_ooo_

_Walking into the hospital, Andelko looked around nervously. It was his first day of work, and he knew that it wasn't going to be easy._

"_Doctor Begovich; over here." A man, probably around ten years older than Andelko said from beside the reception desk, smiling and waving to him. Andelko walked over._

"_I'm Doctor Sadik Adnan. You'll be joining my Trauma Team today." The other employee stated, offering a hand to Andelko. Andelko shook it firmly._

"_I'm looking forward to it." He replied._

"_If you'll come with me, I'll introduce you to the old Trauma Team. We're actually relatively new, you and I. I've only been here at St. Vargas' for the past two years." Sadik mused, leading the Croatian to the main part of the ER. "You see, Antonio came to the conclusion that St. Vargas' needs a new Trauma Team that was trained using the new systems and technology. His solution; take some young people, mainly fresh college graduates like you, and put them together to work in the ER. He needs at least five of us to complete the team. So far, it's just you and me. I'm going to guess it'll take a few years for us to get the new team put together."_

"_Yeah… So this old Trauma Team; what will become of their jobs if we're replacing them, Doctor?" Andelko asked._

"_They're getting on in years, so they're going to be put to simpler tasks. Something that doesn't require so much quick thinking and running down halls. And please, just call me Sadik."_

_Andelko was introduced to quite a few people in the ER, and was happy to see that the other hospital employees were looking forward to working with him. His nervousness was eased, but only for a little while._

_Antonio hurried over, slightly out of breath, clothes disheveled as if he had been hurrying around the ER. "Sadik, Andelko, we've got a car accident victim coming in. I need you two to help me out here." He explained. Sadik smirked and looked to Andelko._

"_Well, new guy, looks like you've got your first big operation on your first day. Lucky. Come on; to the trauma center we go." The Turkish man led Andelko to the trauma center while Antonio hurried to the entrance of the ER, escorting the patient in on the gurney._

_Andelko got prepped in the trauma center, putting on a surgical mask and a pair of latex gloves, nervously tapping his foot on the floor, awaiting the arrival of the patient._

"_Chill out, Andelko. I'm sure everything will go smoothly." Sadik commented._

"_Sorry… Just kind of nervous, you know? Wasn't expecting polytrauma on my first day." Andelko responded, still tapping his foot._

_When the patient was wheeled in, the doctors transferred the bloodied man onto the operating table carefully, then hooked him up to vitals. The more obvious wounds were deep gashes in the man's head and upper body, which occasionally had large pieces of glass sticking out._

"_Antonio, what's the story here?" Sadik asked as Antonio, the head doctor in the ER at that time, flipped through the pages clipped to a clipboard._

"_Jack Portman. Age thirty-seven. Blood type O positive. Crashed his car into a pole after losing control, wasn't wearing a seatbelt. Flew through the windshield." Antonio explained quickly._

"_Alright, then. Let's get the bleeding stopped, remove any glass from the wounds, stitch up what we can… Repair any broken bones, and get him shipped off to recovery. Andelko, I'll give you the task of removing glass from the wounds. Start with the large pieces, move to the smaller ones gradually. Staunch bleeding, start stitching. You know the deal. I'm going to work on his legs. Antonio, do his arms?" Sadik sounded pretty much more authority-demanding than Antonio had ever seemed._

"_Of course." Antonio said. The three got to work, Andelko doing his work silently. Sadik ordered Antonio and him to do things, though finally Andelko retorted._

"_Isn't Doctor Fernandez head doctor of the ER? Shouldn't we be taking orders from him, instead of him and I taking orders from you, Doctor Adnan?" He asked, not looking up from his work on the patient. Sadik put down his tools and turned to Andelko._

"_Excuse me for trying my best to save the patient with organized instructions." He responded._

"_Are you accusing me of not being organized with my orders?" Antonio asked._

"_You know what, forget what I said and let's just save the patient. Patient first, personal issues second." Andelko decided in his mind that it was best he kept his mouth shut for the rest of the operation, except if he needed to talk._

"_Right… Any orders, Doctor Fernandez?" Sadik's tone was that of mocking, which prompted Andelko to pause and sigh, shaking his head slightly. His first impression on Sadik wasn't all that great, and Sadik's first impression on him was even worse._

_Once the patient had been stabilized and sent off to recovery, Antonio, Sadik, and Andelko exited the trauma center, tensions obviously plaguing the three._

"_So you think the orders in the operations have to be from the head doctor, huh?" Sadik asked, crossing his arms and looking to Andelko._

"_I'm just saying that whoever has the most experience here should be the one to give orders. He's the head doctor, not you. You've only got two years of experience here. Order me around all you want because I'm new, but Doctor Fernandez? You can't order him around." Andelko explained._

"_I seem to be more of a leader than him; why not order him around? Honestly, Antonio, how did you end up head nurse here when you can't demand anyone to do anything?"_

_Antonio crossed his arms. "Excuse me, Doctor Adnan, but I'm far more experienced than you may think. I'm used to rampaging younger guys lie you, thinking they can be the authority in the operating room. But just know that I have connections, and will not hesitate to get you fired if this… ridiculousness continues. Clean up your act, and learn to follow given instructions, instead of giving your own."_

_Sadik was quiet._

_Andelko smirked slightly, but the glare he received from the Turkish doctor made the smirk fade. Sadik walked away, heading down the hall quickly. Antonio sighed and pat Andelko on the shoulder._

"_Don't worry about him, Andelko. He never has liked authority much around St. Vargas'. Before he came here, he was the ER Supervisor at a hospital in Turkey. He likes to think he deserves that position around here, but so far, he hasn't proved that he can handle any sort of authority appropriately. It's supposed to be mutualism between coworkers, even if one is more up the ladder than the other. He acts like it should be a sort of parasitism. One benefits at the expense of the other."_

"_Nice analogies, Doctor Fernandez… Sounds about right."_

_ooo_

Sadik did end up straightening himself out, and submitting to someone else's authority. It actually only took about a month after Andelko began working for it to happen. Now, though Andelko and Sadik still didn't get along all too well, they were able to work together and cooperate on what was needed to be done.

Andelko sighed and set the scrubs he was holding aside. He was about to grab another article of clothing from the closet, but his cell phone rang from his pocket. He pulled it out and answered it.

"Hello?"

There was noise on the other line, and beeps that were obviously from machines in the hospital.

"Hello?" Andelko repeated.

"_Andelko, it's Elizibeta. You have to get to the hospital now!"_

"What? Why? I'm on vacation."

"_I-It's Novak! I stopped by his apartment to see how he was doing, a-and he was lying unconscious on the floor in the piano room. H-He's been stabbed multiple times, and the knife they used I-is lodged in his chest. I-I'm sitting here next to him, doing what I can with what's lying around, but he won't last long like this. G-Get some scrubs on and head to the hospital; paramedics are on their way here to pick Novak up as we speak. I-I'll meet up with you at the hospital."_

Andelko was frozen, his chest tightening painfully. He knew Elizibeta wasn't lying; to hear her so distraught was incredibly rare. Still holding the phone to his ear, Andelko heard some alarming things coming from the other line.

"_L-Liz…" _Novak was speaking very quickly and quietly, breathing labored. _"G-God, this… I-If I don't live, tell Andelko I-I'm sorry…" _ The Serb sputtered out before crying out in agony.

"_Y-You'll live, Novak. I promise." _Liz said, before returning to her conversation with Andelko. _"You there, Andelko?"_

"I… I-I'll head out." Andelko replied.

"_O-Okay. Paramedics just arrived. S-See you in the trauma center." _Elizibeta promptly hung up the phone. Andelko stood there in shock, but shook his head and pushed himself to get some scrubs on and get himself ready to head to the hospital to save Novak's life.

Once he was dressed in a pair of black scrubs, the Croatian rushed out of his home, hopping in his car and rushing to get to the hospital.

His head pounded with a headache and he tapped his fingers nervously on the steering wheel of his car. Every red light felt like an eternity; when the light turned green, he was lucky cops didn't pull him over and cite him for reckless driving and speeding.

Arriving at the hospital, he parked in the parking lot and ran into the ER just as an ambulance pulled in to deliver the patient Andelko never wanted to see hurt. As he hurried to get to the trauma center, Antonio grabbed his arm, stopping him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Andelko, why're you here? You're on vacation if I'm not mistaken."

"My boyfriend just got assaulted; stab wounds and a knife protruding from his chest; Liz called me and told me so. I-I have to be here to save him. I'm not going to sit around and let him die." Andelko explained frantically. Antonio went wide-eyed and nodded, not used to seeing Andelko so panicked.

"Get going, then. Do your job. Save his life." The Spaniard said.

Andelko nodded and ran down the hall the rest of the way to the trauma center. Sadik and apostle were already there, prepped and ready to operate.

"Andelko?" Sadik looked to the Croatian, shocked.

"The man who's coming in is the man I'm with. I'd rather not sit on my ass and leave him in the hands of others." Andelko responded, washing his hands quickly and slipping on some latex gloves. He then retrieved a surgical mask, putting it on to cover his mouth and nose.

As he turned around, Elizibeta and two paramedics hurried in, rolling a gurney in that held the blood-covered Serbian named Novak Novkovic.

They quickly got Novak transferred from the gurney to the bed in the trauma center.

"Let's get his clothes off and see the extent of his injuries." Sadik said. "Liz, you have his information, correct?"

"Yes." Elizibeta responded. "This is twenty-five year old Novak Novkovic. He was assaulted in his home. There are stab wounds on his torso and there is a large gash in his right leg. Blood type AB negative. No previous existing medical conditions, though he did have a leg severed in a machinery accident a few years ago. He has an osseointegrated prosthesis." The Hungarian woman explained as Sadik and Andelko cut away the blood-soaked clothing Novak was wearing. The extent of his injuries was revealed to the trauma team, and it horrified Andelko.

"Let's stop the bleeding and stitch up what we can. Andelko, work to save his right leg." Sadik said. "Apostol, hook the patient up to vitals."

Apostol nodded and went to work, sticking needles in Novak's arm and hooking him up to a heart monitor.

"Heart rate is accelerated, blood pressure dangerously low… He'll need transfusions stat. He's most likely in severe peripheral hypoperfusion. He's in grave danger of cardiac arrest." Apostol explained, reading the screens that showed the levels of Novak's vital signs.

Andelko cut the clothing away from Novak's leg, despite the fact that he could already see the gaping wound in the man's thigh. There was a large, deep gash running from the start of his right leg, down to a few inches above the knee. Andelko could see bone underneath the mass of blood.

"W-We have to close this up somehow…" Andelko said. "He'll lose this leg if we don't do something soon."

"Liz, get all the blood you can for this man." Sadik ordered.

"We're moving into Class IV Hemorrhaging here, guys. Liz, you better sprint." Apostol said. Liz rushed out of the room quicker than anyone had ever seen her run.

Andelko frantically did what he could to try to staunch the bleeding in Novak's leg, but almost nothing seemed to work.

Suddenly, the heart monitor made a prolonged beep, and everyone looked to the screen. Andelko was the first one to speak.

"C-Cardiac arrest! Get the defibrillator!"


	9. Chapter 9

Andelko's anxiety and shakiness made him fumble with the defibrillator, struggling to get it set up correctly. Apostol quickly took the instrument from him, quickly getting it ready and shocking Novak to try to get the Serb's heart to beat.

Andelko took steps backwards, staring at the scene before him. With each shock from the defibrillator, more hope was lost, and Andelko felt more and more guilt. His mind went into overdrive, and he turned, practically running out of the trauma center. He ran until he broke down, sitting down against the reception desk.

He held his head in his gloved hands, not caring that Novak's blood covered the latex. He sobbed, curling into a ball. He couldn't take it; so much pressure had been put on his mind to save Novak. Pressure he knew it was to early for him to handle. People who were sitting in the lobby stared at the Croatian doctor, gazes that of shock and confusion.

"A-Andelko? What the hell?" Pavla rounded the reception desk and crouched down in front of the man. "What's going on?" She asked.

"H-He's dead! Novak's dead! A-Adnan and Svetozar are trying to defibrillate, but i-it's not working! N-Novak's dead, Pavla!" Andelko said frantically through his sobs.

"Listen up, Andelko." Pavla placed her hand on Andelko's chin and lifted his face to look her dead in the eyes. "I don't know about you, but if my heart had stopped, I wouldn't want one of the doctors taking care of me to run out of the room. You care about Novak, right?"

"Y-Yes, but-"

"Then go and do your job! This is what you were meant to do, Andelko. You're a Trauma Nurse; Novak is not only your patient, but your boyfriend as well. You need to get back to the trauma center, and save him. You can do it, Andy. His heart will beat again."

Andelko stared at the Slovenian woman for a few seconds. "P-Pavla… I-I don't know i-if I can… I've done n-nothing but lose patients recently… I-I'll lose Novak."

"Andelko, you and I both know that's bullshit. You're one of the most skilled doctors here; if there's anyone who can save Novak, it's you."

Andelko shook his head slightly. "I-I can't do it, Pavla… I-I can't do it."

"Yes, you can! Think of your mother, Andelko! Would she have wanted you to give up this easily?"

"… n-no…"

"Then go, Andelko." Pavla stood and grabbed the shoulder of Andelko's scrubs, lifting the man to his feet. As he tried to stop his crying, Sadik yelled at the Croat from down the hall.

"You crazy fucking idiot! Get back in there! Novak has a pulse, for fucks sake, and he needs you! So help me Allah, get back in the trauma center or you'll be regretting ever running out on a patient like that!"

Andelko wiped his face on the sleeve of his scrubs, then took a deep, shaky breath. Shoving back all of his fear and doubt, he hurried back to the trauma center. In the room, Apostol was hooking Novak up to blood transfusions, sticking yet another needle into the man's arm. Sadik was working tirelessly and quickly to staunch hemorrhaging and stitch up wounds, while Liz worked on wrapping an elastic band around the upper-thigh on the right leg of the Serbian patient, trying to halt the blood flow to the enormous gash in the man's thigh.

Andelko hurried over to assist Elizibeta. "If we leave the tourniquet on too long, we'll risk an amputation. We need to get this wound closed up fast, so we can get the tourniquet off without risking taking his leg." He explained. Once Elizibeta had the tourniquet was fastened tightly, blood flow was cut off, and Andelko was able to pull the gaping wound closed with durable stitching.

"Remove the tourniquet, Liz." He said. Elizibeta quickly removed the tourniquet. Blood seeped through the stitching as it rushed through Novak's leg once again, but thankfully, Andelko was prepared, and placed patches of gauze over the stitching before wrapping Novak's leg in bandages.

"Leg wound is closed and wrapped up. Sadik, how are the stab wounds coming along?" He asked. Sadik finished stitching up a wound, then spoke.

"That was the last one out of twenty-three stab wounds total. We'll have to make a midline incision. He most definitely has internal injuries."

"Is he stabilizing, Apostol?" Andelko questioned.

"The only injuries now are internal, minus the knife in his chest. Let's get x-rays on his chest done to see how far the knife has gone, and what measures we'll have to take to remove it." Apostol responded.

"Elizibeta, come with me to Radiology. Sadik, Apostol, prepare for the extraction of the knife. Liz, hurry ahead while I roll the patient down. Tell Radiology to be ready."

Elizibeta nodded and hurried out of the room. Andelko carefully rolled Novak out of the room, down the halls quickly. While he hurried to Radiology, he noticed that Novak's anesthesia was wearing off, and he was waking up. Alarmed, his eyes went wide. The paramedics who had brought the Serb in must not have anesthesiated him enough to last this long.

"Shit…" Andelko cursed under his breath. Novak's hands grasped loosely at the sheets on the bed, and his eyes opened slightly, looking around in a daze. The anesthesia was probably giving him some trouble with any sense of coordination.

"Novak, if you can understand what I'm saying, don't move much. There is a knife lodged in your chest, and until we know how close it is to any vital organs, we want you to remain still and calm."

"Nn…. Andy…" The Serbian mumbled, his ability to speak not only weakened by his anesthesia, but by his internal injuries.

"Shh. Don't speak. Just close your eyes and remain calm." Andelko said as he entered Radiology. The Radiologists quickly got him set up at a machine.

"He's waking up from anesthesia, so we need to get this done and get him back to the trauma center to re-anesthesiate him remove the knife from his chest." Andelko explained to the two other employees. They quickly took the images of Novak's chest, processing the x-rays and allowing Andelko to take them to the trauma center.

Soon, Novak was once again in the trauma center, and he was knocked unconscious with a dose of anesthesia that would keep him from waking up for the next few hours.

Andelko took the x-rays he had received from Radiology, and placed them on a lighted board on the wall. He stared at the images, shocked, but happy at the same time. That knife was mere centimeters away from Novak's heart. They could take it out without risk of hitting any arteries though, so the extraction would be pretty simple. Novak was lucky though; any deeper and the knife would have struck his heart and killed him.

"Looks like the removal can go simply. The knife hasn't hit anything major, and it's not too close to any arteries that would be hit if we aren't careful." He explained.

"Well, then let's commence the extraction." Sadik said. Andelko nodded and walked over, glancing at the screens showing Novak's vitals, smiling slightly. He was stabilizing slowly. There was still plenty that was needed to be done to make sure he remained that way.

"Sadik, I'll remove the knife slowly. Ready gauze to place over the wound once the knife is out." Andelko told the Turkish doctor on the other side of Novak. Sadik nodded and readied a patch of gauze.

Andelko gripped the handle of the knife tightly, and slowly pulled it out, setting it aside. Sadik quickly taped a patch of thick gauze over the wound, soaking up the blood that streamed from the wound.

"We need to make a midline incision now, and repair any internal injuries there are." Andelko said.

"Apostol, watch his vital signs. Liz, work the drain, More than likely there's going to be a lot of blood in his chest cavity." Sadik ordered. Andelko grabbed a scalpel and sighed slightly.

"Making midline incision." He stated, dragging the sharp surgical instrument across Novak's chest, successfully making the incision. Elizibeta used a drain and removed blood from the cavity, revealing to the four hospital employees a punctured lung, and scrapes on the bronchial tubes.

"… This can't be all that's causing the bleeding." Sadik muttered, puzzled as to where the blood in the patient's chest cavity was coming from. "Andelko, check around his heart, if you can. There has to be an artery that was hit."

Sure enough, an artery had been hit, but it was an easy fix. Synthetic membrane was placed over the cut in the artery, which the body would most likely accept.

The scrapes on the Bronchial tubes would heal on their own, most likely, but now came the task of repairing the lung, which wasn't all that hard. Sadik was the one to finish up on the internal injuries. Andelko closed Novak's chest up, then bandaged it thoroughly.

"Looks like we're done here… Let's get him to the ICU to be observed for the next few hours. If there are any complications, they'll be taken care of." The Croatian said. He slipped off his latex gloves and took off his surgical mask, tossing them in the trash and sighing heavily, walking out of the trauma center.

He leaned up against the wall, breathing slowly. His nerves were absolutely fried after that life-saving operation. Sadik and Apostol rolled Novak off to the ICU, while Elizibeta approached Andelko.

"You did great, Andy. Novak will be happy to hear that you helped save his life." She said, placing a hand on the bearded man's shoulder.

"I didn't do anything great… I ran out of there when his heart stopped because I couldn't take seeing him dead. I didn't save his life at all…" Andelko responded, looking away.

"Andelko, it's only been a week since your mental breakdown after seeing Zlatko injured after his car crash. Coming back so soon was very risky, considering your mental stability. Sure, going to Croatia may have helped, but you need more than a week away for your mind to recover from it's trauma. I can't blame you at all for doing what you did; you're still damaged. From the looks of things, I think you're suffering from a form of PTSD." Elizibeta said.

"Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? I don't know… What trauma have I really been through? I mean, I see people with horrible injuries in the ER every time I work here. I'm not supposed to be mentally scarred by things like this."

"You've been through so many things that could cause PTSD. Vukovar, for instance. Losing your father. And when you came here to the states; losing your mother. And then on top of all that, you become an ER Trauma Nurse. In the ER you see people die a lot. You see a lot of horrifying things. For you, it's finally taking an adverse effect… I think you should go see a therapist or something, Andy. It'd be for the best."

"You think so…? I… I guess I should… I'll look into it."

"Good. Now, I guess you should go talk to Antonio about this… situation."

"What? About me coming back early to operate on Novak?"

"Yeah."

"Well, he knows I'm here, but… I don't know if he'll want me to stay, or what."

"And that's why you need to talk to him."

"Yeah… He's probably running around here somewhere, so… I'll see you in a little while, Liz."

"Yeah, see you in a bit."

Andelko meandered down the halls of the ER, glancing around for signs of the ER supervisor, Antonio Fernandez. Upon not finding the Spaniard, he decided to check the man's typically unused office.

The light was on in the office, but the door was closed. Andelko knocked, and Antonio answered from inside.

"Come in." He said. Andelko opened the door and looked around the brightly-decorated room, easily finding Antonio lounging at his desk.

"Ah, Andelko. You're a dedicated man, to rush into the ER so soon after a mental breakdown, just to save your boyfriend. How is he, by the way? Was the operation a success?" The Spaniard asked.

"The operation was a success… He's in the ICU now, being watched. But, Antonio, I… I don't know how much more of this job I can take. I've seen so many traumatic things here, added on to how my past was… I… I don't want to quit my job, but even going back to Croatia for a week didn't do much for me. I need a longer break than just the three weeks you gave me."

"That's fine. I know I'm technically not supposed to do this, but I'm letting you leave the hospital job for as long as you'd like. You can come back when you're ready. You'll be replaced by someone who I think is ready to get back to doing what she does best."

"Who?"

"Doctor Prockofijev, of course. She'll do great in the ER."

"I have a feeling she will, Antonio… but… Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. Anything." Antonio smiled at the Croat.

"With all that has gone on in my life… The Croatian War, the death of both my parents, working in a hospital ER… do you think it's possible that I've obtained some sort of mental condition? PTSD or something along those lines?"

"Hm… Well, considering what you've been through, it's quite a possibility. I'll give you the number of a good friend of mine. He's a licensed psychiatrist, and will do therapy sessions with you for free, since you'd have been sent by me. He'll be happy to help you out."

"Who is this psychiatrist?"

"Doctor Francis Bonnefoy. He's French. A bit promiscuous, but he's really helpful when it comes to people with stress like you have."

"Promiscuous? This guy won't be hitting on me when I go see him, right?"

"I'm not going to promise that he won't, but don't worry. He knows the boundaries."

"Okay… I'll give him a call sometime soon… And thank you, Doctor Fernandez… It means a lot to me that you would give me such a break. Uh… I hate to ask, but will I get paid while I'm gone?"

"Yes, of course. It won't be as much as it would be if you were actually working, but it'll be enough to take care of your bills, I'm sure."

"Okay. Thanks."

"It's not a problem. I'm sure you'll be visiting Novak while he stays here, correct?"

"Yeah… I won't be visiting him in scrubs though. I'm going to go home, get a shower, change into some fresh clothes… Probably get something to eat, and come back when I'm done to see if he's awake."

"Sounds good. If you need anything, just talk to me, alright?"

"Alright. Thanks."

"No problem, Andelko. You take it easy, alright?"

"I'll try to." Andelko said, heading back to the door. "I'll see you later."

"See you later, doctor."

Andelko walked out of the office, sighing heavily. He walked through the halls of the ER, then went through the lobby. He stopped at the reception desk, looking to Pavla.

"How did the operation go, Andy?" She asked.

"Successfully… I don't feel that I contributed much, but anyways, I just talked with Antonio… He's letting me go on paid leave for a while, until I feel stable enough to come back to the ER. Recommended I go see a psychiatrist… Both he and Liz think it's possible that I've developed PTSD." Andelko explained.

"Who'll replace you on the trauma team?"

Andelko smirked. "A certain Slovene woman who works in reception as we speak."

Pavla beamed. "Oh my God, really? He's letting me get back to the ER?"

Andelko nodded. "Yeah. I wonder who'll run reception in your absence…"

"Probably an intern or something."

"Yeah, probably… Well, 'm going to get out of here, get some things done, then come back to see if Novak's awake. We gave him a dose of anesthesia that probably will keep him out like a light for quite a while."

"Alright. I'll see you later, Andy."

"See you."

Andelko walked out of the hospital, feeling as if a heavy weight had lifted itself from his shoulders. He didn't have to come back to the ER to work for as long as needed. After suffering through a mental breakdown, it was understandable that Antonio would give him a paid leave from work to rest and rebuild his frayed nerves.

Upon arriving at his home, he parked his car in the garage and got out, heading inside the one-story house he called his own. He made his way to his bedroom, removing his clothes from his body and heading into the bathroom to take a shower. He hadn't realized it before, but there was blood on his arms, above where the latex gloves he wore ended. He shook his head slightly, taking a deep breath and hopping in the shower.

The warm water running over his tense muscles felt like heaven, especially after an ordeal like the one he'd been through during the day. He finished up his shower after around fifteen minutes, then got out and got himself dried off, before heading out of the bathroom to get some clothes to wear. He pulled on a pair of boxers, jeans, some socks, and a red and white checkered tank top. Sure, it wasn't his best of looks, but it would have to do, because quite frankly, he didn't care too much how he looked after the events of the day.

He reached up and scratched at his chin, sighing a bit. His beard was getting a bit longer than he preferred it to be. He supposed he would shave before he went and got something to eat from the kitchen. He went back into the bathroom and grabbed his trimmer, trimming down the facial hair before looking a himself in the mirror. Deciding to have a bit of fun with the hair on his face, he grabbed the shaving cream and lathered some onto his cheeks. He shaved off the parts of his beard that covered his cheeks, leaving straight sideburns and a circle beard*.

Satisfied with his work, Andelko wiped his face of any excess shaving cream, patted some aftershave onto his cheeks, and exited the bathroom.

He meandered out into his kitchen to get something to eat, grabbing an apple out of the fridge and chuckling slightly.

"If only an apple a day kept the ER away…" He muttered, taking a bite of the red fruit.

**Xxx**

*Circle beard; it's the combination of a moustache and goatee. Some people think a goatee is a circle beard, but technically, the goatee is just the facial hair that resides on the chin.

Shorter chapter than usual, I know. But since my laptop is in critical condition and probably needs to go to the computer ER, I can't write for too long. If this thing overheats, it's bye-bye computer until repairs are available.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: **After waiting quite some time since my laptop broke, I've finally decided to rewrite this on my new one. I haven't had the chance to get my files transferred from my old laptop's hard drive onto this one, and I'm itching to get Borderline finished. There will be one or two more chapters after this one, so… yep. We're in the closing chapters. Enjoy.

**xxx**

After waiting around his home for about half an hour, Andelko decided to head back to the hospital, though he knew Novak wouldn't yet be awake from his anesthesia.

Upon entering the doors of the ER, he spotted Antonio speaking with Pavla at the reception desk. They were going over some papers, most likely going over the changes in her duties from receptionist to ER Trauma Nurse, which was a lot to go over, considering it was a big jump from sitting at a desk all day to saving the lives of those in critical condition.

He ventured past the front desk, into the ER, sighing slightly. There was so much that had gone on in this very ER that had changed his life; from day one, the Croat knew it was going to be an experience all its own, but to think that it would cause a shift in his very sanity was beyond him.

Upon entering the main area of the ER, Andelko spotted Elizibeta sitting at her desk, typing on her computer, reading off of a chart next to her keyboard. He approached her.

"I'm back, Liz." He said, leaning against the desk with a tired smile.

"Welcome back. I checked on Novak while you were gone; he's still not awake. His vitals are well-stabilized… I'm putting his information into our database so if anything happens, we'll know everything we need to know. It's hard to believe I could get his medical records from Serbia so easily… I plugged his name into the system, and it came up from a database in a hospital in Belgrade. As it turns out, the surgery on his leg to put the prosthetic was pretty… gruesome, from what the records say. He had a whole hell of a lot of complications. Multiple visits to the hospital after his initial surgeries to put the osseointegrated prosthetic in…"

"Really now? Do you think I could take a look at these records later?"

"Sure. I'll print them out for you so you can read them when you're at home. These have to remain confidential, blah, blah, blah; you know the ropes, Andy."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm totally going to ruin Novak's life with records of his hospital visits in Serbia." Andelko chuckled. "Sometimes I question the protocol we have to follow."

"I know, right?" Elizibeta looked up from her computer screen and blinked silently in surprise at Andelko.

"What?"

"Your face. You shaved. The world is ending."

Andelko laughed and smacked her arm lightly. "I don't think so."

Elizibeta laughed. "Hey now, men shouldn't hit women."

"I'm not your usual man, though." Andelko smirked.

"So true. So true. Well, Andy, I have some more work to do, so you go on ahead and head to the ICU where Novak is…." Elizibeta trailed off as she read a notice she had just received on her computer. "Well, well… Looks like Zlatko is wanting to speak to you, Andelko. May as well stop by his recovery room on your way to the ICU. It's rare enough that he talks, let alone wants to speak with anyone."

"Alright. Can I ask what room he's in, as well as Novak?"

"Zlatko is in Recovery Room 27, if I remember correctly, and Novak is in ICU Room 1."

"Alright. Thanks."

"Not a problem, Andy." Elizibeta smiled at the Croatian doctor before going back to her work. Andelko left the area, heading down some halls, eventually arriving at Zlatko's.

"Doctor Pilav?" He asked as he walked in. Zlatko turned his head to face the Croat.

"Good evening, Doctor Begovich… How are you?" The Bosnian asked quietly, voice weak. It had been a little over a week since his accident, and Andelko knew the man was still in rough shape.

"I'm alright, I guess. How're you feeling?" Andelko responded as he pulled up a chair beside the bed of the injured man.

"Like hell… but it's not so bad. I… I honestly can't remember much about the crash, but… I talked to Elizibeta not too long ago… She told me what happened to you after you guys helped me out…"

"Stress can be a hell all on its own."

"Yeah… but she also visited about twenty minutes ago… Told me that your boyfriend was the victim of a stabbing…"

Andelko nodded a bit. "My boyfriend was involved in some… unlawful activity when he was younger, and he suffered the repercussions earlier today."

"I know it must have been a harrowing task to save him under such conditions we have here in this hospital… I want to apologize from the bottom of my heart for not being able to assist in the operation… I also want you to wish your boyfriend the best of recoveries from his injuries. It is the least I could do, doctor."

Andelko was touched by the other's words. "I… Zlatko… I forgive you, and I'll be sure to tell him your sympathies… You two are in similar situations, you know… You both were near death, and now you both… You both are on the road to recovery."

"It's a rocky road, though… The risk of complications is high."

"Yeah… but if there's anyone who can make it through any complications that arise, it's you, Zlatko… You're the quiet one. They always say the strongest people are the quiet ones that have the harshest backgrounds. You became an ER Nurse, saving lives on a day to day basis, without care to your own situations or your past. I know you must have had it rough growing up in Bosnia during the war. It means more to me than you think to have you on my Trauma Team. To have such a strong person, with such a rough past, standing beside me, aiding to save the lives of those who deserve it most… It's an honor, Zlatko."

Zlatko chuckled slightly, smiling. "It's my honor, Andelko… I may have had a rough past with the war, but all I've ever wanted to do is help the world become a better place. All I want is to save lives, not end them. The war… it changed my perspective on a lot of things. It made me who I am today; I'm a nurse because of the sacrifices my country's people made back then… all the death could have been prevented, if one kind soul did something differently… One person can make a difference in this world, and being an ER Nurse… I feel like I'm helping change things. Maybe the people we save, maybe they'll open their eyes and see the world from a different point of view… That it's not all about them; that others need help… A single kind gesture can lead to thousands more. Even at the cost of myself, I'll help others… That's the reason I work so hard, and work these crazy hours… That's why I fell asleep and crashed my car. I had been working so long, striving to help others… I don't regret a thing. All the pain in the world couldn't make me regret helping others that night."

Andelko felt tears well up in his chocolate-brown eyes and drip down his cheeks, his very soul touched by the words the usually quiet Bosnian lying before him said.

"That… Wow, I've… I've never heard anything that… emotional in my life, Zlatko…" He muttered, reaching up and wiping his tears away. Zlatko sighed peacefully, reaching over and placing his hand on the Croat's shoulder to comfort him.

"Thank you, for stopping by, Andelko… Means a lot to me that you could come chat for a bit."

"You're welcome, Zlatko… You're very welcome." Andelko stated, standing and leaning over the hospital bed, hugging the Bosnian man. "I wish you the best of luck with your recovery… I hope to see you back in the Trauma Center in a few months."

"Yeah. I'll see you leading us, as always, Andelko. Take it easy."

Andelko nodded, letting go of Zlatko and turning to leave the room. As he exited, he accidentally bumped into a man who was entering the room.

"Huh? Oh, Doctor Adnan. How are you?" Andelko asked, looking to the Turkish man, who sighed tiredly.

"I'm drained, but whatever. Uh, listen… You did a good job earlier with Novak Novkovic. I… well, I can understand the pressure that's put on your mind, and I can understand entirely why you kind of lost it when he died on us… I know what it's like to lose a loved one, and that's why I worked as hard as I did to save him. I don't want anyone else suffering the heartbreak I did ten years ago. When I was your age, I was madly in love with this guy, and… before I could even tell him I loved him, he got into a car accident and died. I pretty much lost my mind when that happened, and I'm still finding it hard to recover fully. But, uh… yeah… God, it's awkward talking to you like this…"

Andelko laughed a bit. "Don't worry about it, Sadik. I understand, and thanks. I know without you, Novak wouldn't have lived through the operation, so… Yeah."

"You're welcome. I'm guessing you're off to see him, then?"

"Yeah. He's probably not awake, but at least he's alive."

"Yep. And Andelko?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't take for granted the time you have with him."

"I won't."

"Good. Now get going. I've got to assess Zlatko's progress for the day."

"See you, Sadik."

"Yeah. See you too, kid."

Andelko smiled slightly and walked off down the halls, eventually arriving at the ICU, where Novak was. He entered the dim room quietly, seeing the blonde Serb lying in the hospital bed, blanket over his legs and lower torso. Standing beside the bed, he ghosted his fingertips across the man's unshaven cheek, staring somberly at the closed emerald eyes he wished to see open.

"… Doctor Begovich?"

Andelko looked over his shoulder to see who had said his name. Standing in the doorway was Lillian, who was holding Novak's wallet and cell phone in a zip-lock bag. There was blood smeared on the items, which sent chills down Andelko's spine.

"Hello, Lillian." Andelko greeted.

"Am I interrupting something, or is it alright for me to be here?"

"It's alright. You're not interrupting anything. Are those Novak's things?" Andelko asked, turning around to face the young college student.

"Yeah. Doctor Hedervary told me to run them over here."

"Just set them on the counter for now." Andelko stated. Lillian nodded and placed the items on a counter by the door.

"How's your shadowing been going, by the way?" Andelko asked, smiling at the girl.

"It's exhausting sometimes, but it's pretty good. I've gotten a lot of experience in emergency situations here at St. Vargas'. It's definitely going to help me in my future career."

"That's good to hear. If there's ever anything you need help understanding, you can always turn to one of us doctors if you'd like, as well as the nurses."

"I always ask Doctor Hedervary for help, if I need it. She's very willing to help when she has the time. She's becoming something like a big sister to me."

Andelko chuckled. "Is that so? She's kind of a younger sister to me, you know. She and I are very close friends. She actually shadowed me when she was in college."

"She's mentioned that once or twice when we've talked."

"I see. Well, I best not keep you from your duties. I'll see you around, Lillian."

"Of course, doctor. See you." Lillian smiled politely at Andelko before exiting the room. Andelko went over to the counter and sighed, removing the items the college student had dropped off,

Andelko first removed Novak's things from his blood-stained wallet. The leather itself had absorbed the blood, so it wasn't of any good to keep. Andelko placed the Serb's ID and a credit card aside, along with a few dollar bills and some blood-soaked business cards. He washed off The ID and the credit card, drying them off with a paper towel. Knowing the blood-soaked dollar bills and business cards would raise questions if exchanged with anyone, Andelko disposed of them in a garbage can.

He took Novak's cell phone, and after wiping the blood off of the outside, he looked through the messages. A single one from a restricted number alarmed him greatly.

'_This is it, Novak. Six years with no payment? You're dead to us.'_

That must have been the text message Novak received before he was assaulted. Glancing back at the Serbian, who still lay unconscious in his bed, Andelko noted the small scrapes and cuts on his bare hands and arms that were most likely defensive wounds.

He looked back to the cell phone, closing it and setting it aside. He shook his head slightly, sighing heavily. He couldn't have imagined what it was like for Novak to have been so brutally assaulted. To be stabbed twenty-three times, and receive a huge gash in your only good leg? No one could imagine such a feeling.

After waiting around for a few minutes, enveloped in his own spiraling thoughts, finally, there was movement from the bed, and a groan from an obviously in-pain Serb. Andelko turned and went to the side of the bed, grabbing a hold of Novak's hand.

"You're awake… How do you feel?" He asked.

"… How do you think… I feel?" Novak muttered, squeezing Andelko's hand weakly. "I'm glad I woke up to you though… You can take care of me…"

Andelko chuckled a bit. "Just relax, Novak… I'll get some painkillers for you to take." Andelko went to turn and walk away, but Novak's grip on his hand tightened.

"Can't you just press the call button? I… I don't want to be alone right now…" Novak muttered. Andelko nodded, turning back to face the other man.

"Alright…" Andelko said softly, bringing Novak's hand to his lips, kissing the man's knuckles gently. He pressed the button on the railing of the bed, alerting a nurse at one of the main desks of the ER.

"_Why did I expect to get a call from this bed soon?"_

Andelko chuckled; it was Liz.

"Hey Liz. Novak just woke up, and he's in some pain. Care to bring some painkillers… Actually, do we have any paracetamol IVs available?" He asked.

"_Of course we do, Andy. This is a hospital."_

"Yeah, yeah. Just bring one up. I'll administer it so you can get back to your job."

"_Alright. I'll be there in a minute or so."_

After a few moments of waiting, Elizibeta arrived with the IV fluid bag. Novak already had one IV in his left wrist that was giving his body much-needed blood.

"Looks like we'll have to put this one in the crook of your left elbow." Andelko said. "Or would you prefer we put it in your other arm?"

"Put it in my other arm, please. I'd like to be able to use my arms after this hospital visit… It's not like these damn stickers on my chest limit my movement in this bed enough. Just put more tubes and wires into me, why don't you? What do these sticker thingies do anyways?" Novak complained, his ramblings not making too much sense to the doctors. It was probably the anesthesia's after-effects.

"Now, now, Novak; complaining isn't going to get you anywhere." Elizibeta scolded. "Those "sticker thingies" monitor your heart, which was close to being hit by the knife that was lodged in your chest. We want to make sure that you stay alive and well. Soon we'll get that transfusion IV out of your left arm. Your intake level on that drip seems to be decreasing, so you should be returning back to typical blood levels soon."

Novak simply nodded a bit, leaning his head back on the pillow under it.

"I'll take it from here, Liz." Andelko said, smiling at the Hungarian.

"Alright. Take it easy, you two. I'll be back in about an hour to check up on you. I know it won't be needed since you're here, Andy, but I'll need some kind of excuse to get away from my desk for at least a little bit." Elizibeta laughed a bit.

"I know what you mean, Liz. See you later." Andelko said, chuckling.

"See you." With that, Elizibeta exited, leaving Andelko to administer the IV to Novak. The Croatian doctor sighed and went over to a cabinet, retrieving some latex gloves.

"You're really putting on gloves for this?" Novak asked.

"It's just a protocol that I follow… If I didn't do it, it'd be like… Like a Catholic priest worshipping Satan." Andelko replied, chuckling and retrieving a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a cotton ball. He went over to Novak's side after dampening the cotton ball in the rubbing alcohol.

"Hold out your arm, please." He said. Novak held out his left arm, and Andelko rubbed the cotton ball against the skin of the inside of the other's elbow. He then took an elastic band and wrapped it around the man's upper-bicep.

"Squeeze your hand a few times."

Novak listened, and Andelko sighed a bit. "You know, I never imagined I'd ever have to administer such strong painkillers to my boyfriend via IV." He muttered.

"Shit happens… Stupid shit, at that…" Novak responded, half scolding himself.

"It was a mistake you made when you weren't the mature, knowledgeable man you are now." Andelko replied, leaning down and placing a kiss on the blonde's forehead. He then grabbed the IV needle, looking for a vein in the Serb's skin, before puncturing the skin, inserting the IV into the vein. Novak only cringed a bit, probably used to pains far greater than an IV.

Andelko taped the needle to the man's skin with some medical tape, and then hooked it up to the paracetamol drip, removing the elastic band from Novak's arm, and completing the process of administering the IV to the man.

"There you go. With this IV, the pain should subside fairly quickly. It's a pretty strong painkiller, too, so… if you get a bit loopy; just blame it on the paracetamol." The Croat explained as he removed his latex gloves, tossing them in a garbage bin, along with the cotton ball he had used.

"Great… so half the time I'm conscious, I'm not going to be normal. I'm going to be high off of IV-administered painkillers."

"Well, that's the way it works around here, especially when you've had such serious injuries as you did."

"Can I… Can I ask what happened after I passed out at the apartment? I mean… I remember when Liz found me, and… I remember her calling the paramedics, then calling you… But once I passed out… Yeah…"

"Well… I was pretty much in shock, but… I knew I had to come here and do what I could to save your life…" Andelko started, pulling up a chair to the side of the bed and sitting down, grabbing a hold of the other man's hand. "I… I got here, and immediately, things were kind of chaotic… but we were orderly until… until…" The doctor hesitated, choking up slightly.

"Until…?"

Andelko sighed shakily. "U-Until you died. I… I couldn't take the… the sight of you dead. I-I ran out of there, trying to run from my fears in a-a stroke of insanity… I-I sat out on the floor against the reception desk, and cried… Pavla came around, a-and… I explained to her what had happened… I… She was able to get me to recover just enough to decide to head back to the trauma center… Apostle was the one who got your heart beating again… n-not me… I… I worked to close the wound in your leg, a-and… then we took you to radiology t-to see how deep the knife was in your chest… D-Do you remember waking up when we were taking you there?"

Novak thought for a moment. "I… I only remember a bit…"

"I-I see… but, anyways… we took you there and got you scanned, then got you re-anesthesiated. The knife was a few centimeters away from your heart… I-It was safe to take out, so we got it removed, but… we realized you weren't stabilizing… S-So we had to cut you open and see… what damage was done internally… a-and… there wasn't too much there, but… an artery had been hit. It wasn't major, but it was something that needed to be fixed… We did what we could for your wounds, and… closed you up. You began stabilizing, and now you're here."

"Have you been here since then?"

"No… I went home to try to clear my head a bit and get something to eat… Took a shower, changed my clothes… Then came back here to see if you were awake. I figure I should tell you this… I… before I left the hospital after your operation, I talked to Liz, and… she told me it's possible that I've developed post-traumatic stress disorder from all that I've been through… I wasn't too sure, but then I went to talk with my boss, Antonio, about me coming back here and about Elizibeta suspecting me of having PTSD… I had a conversation with him, and he said that I can leave work for as long as I need in order to recover from my mental breakdown last week… I… I asked him about the possibility of PTSD, and he said that there's a high possibility. He gave me the number of a psychiatrist he trusts… I… I guess I'll be seeing a psychiatrist sometime soon."

Novak squeezed the man's hand slightly. "If it helps you recover, then I'm all for it… I know I'll be in this hospital for a while recovering from my own type of injuries, but I always say; recovering from physical injuries is far less important than recovering from mental ones."

Andelko chuckled. "You sure you want to be with a guy who has PTSD?"

"I plan on being with you for a long while, Andelko… You're the only man who has ever… made me truly feel happiness… When I see you, I don't worry about anything… I feel safe around you, and I don't feel ridiculed for being handicapped like I am."

"What're you getting at?"

"Andelko… I love you."


	11. Chapter 11

Andelko was frozen for a moment, shocked to the core by Novak's words. The Serb _loved_ him, even though they hadn't even known each other very long. Jumbled thoughts rattled Andelko's already unstable mind, and he felt as if he were going to pass out

He could feel lightheadedness creeping in, making him sway slightly. He propped an elbow up on one of his legs and rested his head in that hand, trying to clear his thoughts.

Novak loved him. That was clear as day.

Andelko cared very much about Novak. That was also clear.

Everything else was just scrambled phrases in his mind.

"… Andelko…?" Novak sounded slightly fearful, as if he was feeling rejected.

"I-It's alright, Novak… I just… You were very direct, there… and… Quite frankly, I… I know I have very deep feelings for you… but I… I…"

"You're just not ready for love, yet… I understand. I just want you to know how I feel. It's best in a relationship." Novak smiled at the Croatian doctor.

"Y-Yeah… I… I accept your feelings, Novak… I just… I can't say that I'm even capable of loving someone right now… Maybe when I'm more mentally stable… Maybe when I'm capable of logical thought again…" Andelko muttered, lifting his head slowly to face the injured man. Novak chuckled slightly.

"… I have very strong feelings for you, Andelko… I never thought that I'd end up head over heels for someone like this… I'm very glad that I met you, and very glad that things have gone, well... alright, I suppose. Relationship-wise, we're good. Health-wise, I think we're both on the edge of pure mindlessness."

Andelko chuckled, gripping Novak's hand tightly. "Once I'm recovered, Novak… I can learn to love."

"Take all the time you need. The wait will be worth it."

_-Fifteen days later-_

Andelko was sitting in Novak's recovery room, chatting happily with the Serbian pianist, discussing anything that came to mind. As they conversed, a knock came on the closed door.

"Come in." Novak said, turning his head to the door. The door opened, revealing Elizibeta and Sadik, the latter of the two pushing an empty wheelchair into the room.

"Good news, Novak. You're going to be allowed to go home for a while." Sadik said, smiling at the Serb, placing the wheelchair next to the bed.

"What? Really?" Novak's eyes lit up and a grin was immediately on his face.

"Yep!" Elizibeta beamed. "We've been really studying your progress, and you're making a remarkable recovery. You'll be able to walk on your right leg in what we estimate to be a month and a half, and your stab wounds will be healed fully within the next two weeks, if all goes as planned."

"And, the best part is, you won't have to have some random caretaker helping you out on a day-to-day basis. You'll have Andelko here. I'm sure it's not too much of a hassle for you to take care of your boyfriend, right, Andelko?" Sadik looked to the Croat, who laughed a bit.

"Of course not. I'll gladly take care of him." Andelko responded, standing. He moved the chair that he had been sitting on over to the wall and sighed happily.

"All we need you to do, Novak, is sign these discharge papers, and we'll have Andelko roll you out of here." Elizibeta handed Novak some papers and a pen, smiling. While Novak filled out the papers, Andelko, Liz, and Sadik talked.

"So how's work been today, you two?" Andelko asked.

"Not too bad, actually. Worst we had was a teenager who had gotten a piece of glass in his foot. Right on the outside of it. If he would have stepped a centimeter to his left, he would have missed the glass. Pretty decent injury though; the glass was almost all the way through his foot. It was only hitting muscle, though, so we had options as to what we wanted to do." Sadik replied.

"Ouch. That's got to hurt."

"I was shocked; he didn't cry until we started extracting it." Liz said. "He was a trooper though. We had asked him if he wanted to go through surgery, or just have us numb the area and take it out, and he said just take it out. His mother agreed to it too. We numbed the area the best we could, then took it out. Went pretty simply."

"I'm glad. Simple things are the best, and it's great to help out kids. I always feel great when I help out someone who's so young." Andelko responded.

"Yeah. Brings me a lot of pride. I love my job for what it is. Even if it's something as simple as a piece of glass in someone's foot, at the end of the day, I know I helped someone." Sadik smiled.

"And… done." Novak said from the bed as he finished signing the discharge papers. "Here you go, Liz." The man held out the papers to the Hungarian woman, grinning. Liz took them and looked them over real quick, nodding her head.

"Alright, we're good. Andelko, you know what to do if any complications arise. Just bring him back here and we'll help him out."

"Mhm. Thanks you two." Andelko said. He looked to Novak, chuckling a bit. "We better get you out of that hospital gown… I don't think you have any clothes here, though…" He muttered, thinking for a moment. "Oh, Liz, could you be a dear and go down to my locker in the staff lounge? I have an extra pair of scrubs in there that he could wear out of here."

"I won't be a "dear" per say, but I will be a friend." Liz laughed slightly. "I'll be right back." The woman walked out of the room, returning a few minutes later with some folded up red scrubs.

"These are nice, Andy."

"They've been sitting in that locker for about a year and a half. I've only ever worn them once." Andelko chuckled.

"Well, Novak, I think you can get your gown off, and put the shirt on, but the pants may be an issue to do alone." Sadik said, laughing a bit.

"It won't be the first time I've had assistance getting pants on." Novak said as he sat up, reaching behind his neck and untying the hospital gown. He pulled it off and set it aside, moving the blankets off of his legs and bringing himself to sit on the edge of the bed. His right leg, though functional, was still very injured from the gash that had nearly forced it to be removed. His left leg was without its prosthetic attachment for the time being, seeing that the doctors wanted to be cautious and not risk hurting his prosthetic attachment while letting the other leg heal.

Liz set the scrubs on the bed, smirking. "You know, Novak, even with twenty-three healing stab wounds on you, you're damn sexy. You know that? I mean, come on. Have you seen your biceps recently? Or your pecs? Damn, it sucks that you're gay!" She joked. Novak laughed heartily.

"Thanks, Liz. It's good to know that I'm still sexy, as always." He joked right back, though Andelko was smiling, a slight blush creeping onto his cheeks.

After a few minutes, Novak was dressed, and the doctors aided the man into the wheelchair. Andelko went behind him and pushed him out of the room, followed by Sadik and Liz.

"You two take it easy, now. Keep us updated, Andy." Liz said, smiling.

"Sure thing. You guys take it easy as well." Andelko replied, waving a bit before returning his hand to one of the handles on Novak's wheelchair.

As he pushed the Serb out of the hospital in the darkness of night, Novak took a deep breath, then let it out slowly.

"It's great to be outside… I've been cooped up in that hospital… It's great to be heading home." He said, grinning, emerald eyes shining in the artificial light of the street lamps.

"I walked here today, so we can just start rolling you on home to your apartment without having to deal with getting you in a car." Andelko replied, smiling. As he pushed the man down the sidewalk, he could tell Novak was thrilled to be out of the hospital. The Serbian pianist's smile never faded, his beautiful green eyes glanced around at the surroundings, as if the place he had lived in for years was all brand new to him.

"Oh, by the way, Novak, I took the courtesy a few days ago of cleaning up your apartment. Your piano room, I think, has never been cleaner." Andelko said, chuckling. Novak leaned his head back, looking to Andelko.

"You're too nice to me, you know that? What did I ever do to deserve the friendship and care of a man like you?" Novak asked, reaching up with a muscular arm and running his fingers across Andelko's jaw.

"You're far more deserving than you think, Novak." Andelko smiled, leaning down and pecking the man on the cheek.

When they arrived at Novak's apartment, Andelko rolled the man into his piano room, observing as Novak looked around the room most likely in reflection of the events that had nearly killed him.

"I remember." The Serbian simply stated.

"What do you mean?" Andelko asked quietly.

"I remember the assault… I remember it all so clearly now that I'm here…" Novak began. "I was… I was playing a new song I had written. I was so into it… I didn't even hear them open the front door… They came into the room, and one had a knife… Two grabbed me and held me still, while the other stabbed me from the front… It was Lovino with the knife… The one who you saw before… He… H-He took it and dug it into my upper thigh on my right leg… th-then ripped the knife down as hard as he possible could have before it slipped out around my knee…" He took a shaky breath, then reached up, placing his hand over the spot where the knife had been lodged in his chest. "Then he stabbed me and left the knife in… T-Told me that I deserved to die… th-then they left… Not too long after, Liz came in… and she found me…"

Andelko could practically see the event occur before his eyes as he looked around. Remembering the dried up blood that he had cleaned up a few days prior; the crimson specks on the keys of the piano, the large pool on the hardwood floor, the smeared handprint on the ground beside where Novak had been lying… It was a scene that Andelko would never forget.

"To live… to breathe… In this world, it is a privilege… So many things can take our lives from us… Mistakes that we've made, mistakes that others make, daily routines gone awry… Death comes as second nature to us. We wish for it not to come, but inevitably, we all know we are to succumb to such a fate. Every time I close my eyes…. I see the faces of death. I see the pain in their eyes. I see the anguish and pain they've suffered… To survive from the brink of death… To… To come back when the world perceived you as gone, is a rarity… Too often have I failed to keep innocent lives here on this earth. But for every one that I can save; for every being that I help remain… I bring pride to my privilege of life. Through instability and stress… I am the proud one." Andelko said, eyes distant. Novak reached to the wheels of his wheelchair, turning himself around to face the Croat.

"But what of those who aren't innocent? What of those who deserve the pain they've suffered?"

"No one deserves pain." Andelko crouched down. "Everyone is innocent in their own way. Some crimes can't be forgiven. Rape, murder, abuse… but even deep in their hearts, no one can be genuinely evil. No one can be… deserving of bloodshed. Deserving of the consequence of death. For those who can't be forgiven, let them rot in a prison and be given time to question their actions. They will succumb to the same fate as everyone else, eventually."

"… What of me?"

"You… Novak, your… so-called "punishment" for not paying your debt to the mafia… You can't say that death was the right way for them to deal with you. You can't honestly say that you deserved to die."

"Well, no…"

Andelko sighed slightly. "I'm sorry… I'm getting carried away with my thoughts…I'll… I'll stop talking."

Novak gently grasped Andelko's hands in his own, smiling a bit. "Your thoughts are something not everyone gets to hear… For me, when you talk meaningfully about your life and your opinions in my vicinity… It makes me feel as if you trust me."

"I do trust you, Novak. I don't believe you'd ever do me wrong."

Novak smiled, pulling the Croatian down into a soft kiss. Andelko, at first, was a bit surprised, but relaxed into it, bringing his hand up and cupping the Serb's cheek, deepening the embrace. When their lips parted, Andelko grinned.

"Do you think you could play some piano for me, Novak? I've missed hearing you play." He said. Novak chuckled.

"Of course. Can you help me out of this chair and onto the piano bench?"

Andelko nodded, helping lift the handicapped man up out of his wheelchair and placing him on the piano bench. Andelko sat next to him smiling. Novak placed his fingers on the keys of the grand piano, face lighting up as he played a few simple chords, before moving onto some more complex ones.

He began to sing softly a tune Andelko hadn't heard before; it was new, and the Croat was probably the first person other than Novak himself to hear it.

"_Have you ever seen,_

_Someone so real you think they're imaginary?_

_Have you ever been,_

_Something so weak but they're what makes you strong?"_

"_Sometimes we have to compromise,_

_Go sleepless until you get it right,_

_We always need to find the time,_

_To say we're sorry and apologize,_

_Even… when it's… not.. needed…"_

Novak glanced to Andelko as he played, smiling as he began singing the chorus.

"_I've never been so in love with what I see,_

_I've never felt so alive when I can't breathe,_

_You give me hope that a man like me,_

_Could believe in love, and believe in dreams."_

Andelko's face reddened slightly; Novak was singing about him. Singing about loving him.

"_Have you ever cried,_

_And one thought pushes your tears back?_

_Have you ever lied,_

_But one person's honesty gives you what you lack?"_

"_Sometimes we need to compromise,_

_Go sleepless until we get it right,_

_We can never find any of the time,_

_To say we're sorry and apologize,_

_Even... when it's… not… needed…"_

"_I've never been so in love with what I see,_

_I've never felt so alive when I can't breathe,_

_You give me hope that a man like me,_

_Could believe in love, and believe in dreams."_

"_I've never been so in love with what I see,_

_Never felt so cared for, I just can't breathe,_

_You've given me hope that a man like me…_

_Could believe in love, and believe in…"_

Novak began to play a solo for a little bit, emerald eyes sliding shut, fingers dancing along the piano keys skillfully in a heart-warming melody that could turn anyone soft.

"_I've never been so in love…_

_Opposites do attract…_

_The patient and the savior,_

_The patient and the savior…"_

"_I've never been so in love…_

_So alive I can't breathe…_

_Given me hope…_

_I can believe… in… dreams."_

Novak played a small outro, then smiled, looking to Andelko. "What do you think?"

"When… When did you write that?" Andelko asked.

"Yesterday."

"Yesterday? How?"

"In my head."

"You… wow… No words can express how… how incredible that song is, Novak…"

"Are you just saying that because it's about you, or because it's good?" Novak laughed, and Andelko lightly smacked his arm.

"It's a great song, Novak… It really is."

"Thanks, Andy…" Novak leaned over, placing his head on the Croat's shoulder, yawning. "Damn, I don't know why, but I'm tired as hell…"

"Would you like to head to bed, then?" Andelko asked.

"That would be affable…" Novak muttered. Andelko helped the Serb back into his wheelchair, pushing the man to his bedroom. He assisted the Serbian in undressing and getting into bed, before stripping down to his boxers and lying down next to the man.

"Let me see your wounds real quick, Novak… Just want to make sure everything's still healing alright." He said. Novak nodded, lying back and allowing the man to inspect his uncovered torso. Andelko looked over the stab wounds quietly, making sure the stitching was being absorbed without any infections. He then took a hold of the covers over Novak's legs, moving them down to reveal the bandaged area on the Serb's right leg.

"Have you had any pain today in your leg?" He asked as he gently undid the wrappings.

"Not really. If I move too much it irritates the stitching, but other than that, I don't feel much pain." Novak explained. Andelko nodded and inspected the healing gash in the man's leg. It was still going to be a while before he could walk on it, but as far as he could tell, there was nothing wrong with the healing process.

After re-wrapping the other man's leg, Andelko sighed a bit. "It's going to be quite some time before you can walk again, but everything checks out fine, so you're still on the right track for healing. If you ever have any pains that seem unnatural though, do tell me. We don't want to risk-"

Novak placed his hand over the Croatian doctor's mouth. "Complications, I know." He chuckled. "Don't worry so much, Andelko. I've dealt with something like this before. I heard all the spiels about wounds and complications back when I lost my left leg… I know you care, but come on, Andy. You get carried away a lot." Novak took his hand off of Andelko's mouth, smiling.

"That reminds me… A while back, when you were still anesthesiated and in the ICU after your surgery… I talked to Liz as she was entering your information into our database… She told me your medical records from Serbia weren't as clean as they seemed. I meant to get the papers from her, but I forgot about it… She… She told me you had a lot of complications after the surgeries to put your prosthetic in."

Novak seemed a bit taken back, but sighed heavily. "I… Yes, I did have complications… but… I don't see why they matter."

"Novak… How long have you really been able to walk? You're told me four years, but I have a feeling it's been a shorter time than that."

"… Two years… It's been two years."

"Why do you lie about the complications, and how long you've been able to walk? I don't see the point."

"I don't deserve pity… People always say "Oh, I'm so sorry you lost your leg. It must have been so bad, and such a long recovery."… Like they really fucking care… I don't need to hear them say they're sorry… I don't need to hear people's insincere comments… They really don't care; they just say those things to look like nice people, then crush you…"

"Novak… I've never heard this out of you before… What memories do you bear that make you so upset when you receive pity…?"

"… When I was in school, as a teen, I was bullied. Call me stupid for allowing it to affect me nowadays, but… there's a reoccurring theme in my life. Back then, I would get beat up for being gay. People would pity me, and then they would take the side of those who picked on me and beat the shit out of me. I would go talk to a school counselor after being found crying under the stairs… They would console me and say that they were sorry that I got beat up and that they were sorry I was the way I was… They didn't fucking care… And then, when I became a soldier, I tried to be better than everyone else just so I couldn't get picked on for being gay… But then I lost my leg, and then came the pity game again. Soldiers would come in and say that they were sorry that I lost my leg… only to turn around and say that I deserved it because I'm a fucking fag. Maybe I should have just given up before I became a target… To them I'm just a pathetic fucking fag… I may as well be…"

"Novak, don't say that, please… I know it's tough in this world, to be gay. I know it is. Fuck, Novak, I'm gay. You think I've never been ridiculed for it? Half the reason I didn't have a social life in college was because I was so afraid of being hazed. I spent some night just locked away in my dorm, ridiculing myself…" Andelko chuckled sadly. "I used to think it was so bad that I was gay… I used to have a rubber band wrapped around my wrist, and any time I had a gay thought, I would snap it against my skin… Some days I ended up with welts on my wrist that bled and were so painful… I tried to convince people I was straight by dating this girl named Yekaterina… But she found out within a month that I was gay. She was so nice… She told me that if I was gay, then I should just let it be so. What others think, shouldn't matter… Inevitably, she saved me from myself, and soon after I stopped "dating" her, I came out to the world as a gay man… I gained a lot of friends and enemies from it, but it made me feel so much better about myself… Being gay isn't… It's not something to be ashamed of. Novak, no matter what's happened in the past, we are who we are…"

"… I'm still afraid, Andelko… with my career… How will the world perceive a gay man who can play piano?"

"Correction; how will the world perceive a strong, brave, handsome gay man with the voice of an angel?"

"Andelko…"

"It's what you are, Novak… No one can change that."

Novak smiled, hugging the Croat tightly. "God, I love you, Andelko."

Andelko chuckled slightly, smiling, deciding it was time he returned the words Novak had been waiting for.

"I… I love you too, Novak."

The two shared a few kisses, passion and hesitation meeting blissfully with the two lover's soft whisperings of love and care, and caresses against warm skin meaning more than just lust, but an endearment that surpassed the means of vocal expression.

The two loved each other.

That was clear as day.

Andelko knew he had a lot on his hands with Novak, but with the careful precision of a doctor's hands, he knew he could guide Novak into health and be able to show more intimacy with the Serbian, not having to worry about stitches and wounds.

That time would come. Andelko had patience.


	12. Chapter 12

Andelko pushed Novak in a wheelchair down through one of the terminals in the Vienna International Airport. Andelko, in a pair of scrubs, was not only Novak's caretaker, but his love as well. Andelko had not only accepted the man's feelings, but returned them with a passion.

Now they were in Vienna to meet up with Novak's former boss and owner of a record label, Roderich Edelstein, and work out a contract to make a second album and some other things related to the Serb's music career.

"Man, we're not too far from Croatia and Serbia… When we're done here in Vienna, whenever that may be, we should head down and visit our homes." Andelko commented.

"Yeah, we should. I haven't been back to Serbia in a while." Novak responded, smiling. "It'd be nice to see everything again… I would say you could meet my family, but… they kind of hate me for going to the United States and losing my leg and so on so forth."

"Yeah… Oh, I should give Blago a call if we go around Dakovo. I'd love for you to meet him. He's known me since we were kids."

"He's the guy with the vineyard, right?"

"Yes."

"Wine any good?"

"I had a glass out of courtesy when I was there. It was alright; he makes good money for a reason."

"I don't drink much, but I think we'll have to have a glass of wine or two while we're there. I think Roderich will have us over for dinner quite a few times while we're here. He's been great enough to rent us out an apartment for a month. Told me it was a friendly favor." Novak smiled. "It's been so long since I've seen him." He reached for his pocket as his phone began to ring, playing a lovely little Spanish jig. Answering the call, he held the phone up to his ear.

"Hello? Oh, hey Mr. Edelstein… Yeah, we're just exiting the terminal." Novak looked around a bit. "A Mercedes? How Germanic of you… Oh, I see you." The Serbian held the receiver away from his mouth, looking to Andelko. "See that black luxury car over there? The spotless thing with the dude in the suit sitting on the hood?"

Andelko looked where Novak had motioned, and nodded. "Yep." He pushed the wheelchair over to the car, Novak hanging up his phone and putting it in his pocket.

"You've grown, Novak. Though you're in deplorable condition." Roderich commented, looking stern-faced. Andelko was at first put off by the man's comments, but relaxed when the Austrian man chuckled and grinned. "Give me a hug, Novak." Roderich leaned down and hugged Novak tightly, Novak returning the embrace just as tightly.

"It's been too long, Mr. Edelstein." Novak said, laughing a bit, grinning widely. Andelko couldn't help but smile.

"Yes, it has been. And I'm assuming this is your boyfriend?" Roderich motioned to Andelko, and Novak nodded. The Austrian man extended his hand to Andelko.

"Roderich Edelstein."

Andelko took the brunet man's hand with a smile. "Andelko Begovich."

"You're a Croat, correct?"

"Yeah, from Vukovar."

"I see. Despite popular beliefs, I am not from Vienna. I'm from Hallein. My family is more German than it is Austrian."

"Distantly back I have some Austrian roots. Great-great-great grandparents or something like that." Andelko chuckled.

"That's great. Will you need any help getting Novak out of his wheelchair and into the car?"

"No, but if you could, please, take our luggage and the chair and put it in the trunk?"

"Sure."

Andelko helped Novak into the front passenger seat of the luxury Mercedes, not shocked as to the vehicle Roderich drove. The man was probably rolling in cash. Andelko climbed into the backseat of the car, sighing in relief. His rear end was relieved to be out of the seats of the airplane.

Once Roderich had finished putting their things in the trunk, the Austrian man got in the driver's seat and began heading towards Vienna.

"Now I don't have anything scheduled for Novak's music today, but would you two want to just head straight to the apartment I rented out for you, or would you be willing to come with me to the Revolutionary Records' recording building for a short tour of where you'll be spending a large portion of your time while you're here?"

"What do you want to do, Andy?" Novak asked, looking over his shoulder at the Croat in the back seat.

"I'm honestly struggling to stay awake back here. I say we head straight to the apartment." Andelko replied.

"Alright. That work for you, Mr. Edelstein?" Novak turned his head back to his former boss.

"That's perfectly fine with me. And please, both of you just call me Roderich."

"Okay."

The drive to Vienna was a beautiful one; the scenery was great, even in the cities.

Roderich parked his Mercedes in front of a very modern-looking apartment, which was more like a house. There was one entire wall made up of windows, while the others had neatly-spaced, standard windows.

"Roderich, please tell me this isn't the apartment." Novak commented.

"It is. I know, it seems very lavish, but it's the least I could do for you two. And, it's wheelchair accessible. I put thought into this. Here." Roderich handed Andelko a key. "I have to head to a meeting, but I'll give you guys a call later to see how you're settling in."

Andelko nodded, taking the key and putting it in his pocket. After assisting Novak into his wheelchair and inside, the Croat went outside and retrieved their luggage from the Mercedes. As he took a few steps towards the apartment, Roderich called out to him.

"Andelko!"

Andelko looked over his shoulder at the Austrian man. "Yeah?"

"I just want to thank you for taking care of Novak like you have been. I can tell that you're a very good man… He deserves someone like you, after all he's been through. When I heard about him getting stabbed… I almost made the decision of leaving Austria and heading to the United States to see him, but I couldn't afford to leave. I'm glad he's alive… He's such a great person, and he will be great to you, I'm sure."

"Uh… You're welcome… and thanks, Roderich. I… I just do what I think is right. I agree, he deserves someone that will treat him well… And thank you, Roderich, for helping him become the man he is today. Without you, he wouldn't have this career of his."

"He was a great student to teach, years ago… It's been so long, but he's done nothing but improve. This next album of his is going to top both European and North American charts, you know. His fame is definitely going to be kicking off very soon."

"I know… It'll be great, though he needs to focus mainly on recovery before he will be able to focus on fame."

"Yes, that is true. How is his recovery going, by the way?"

"Well, within the next two weeks we're going to start some therapy to get him to be able to walk again. His stab wounds are all, for the most part, healed. The large gash in his leg had a complication a while back, and even though we got it treated, it still delayed his healing time. I… I honestly can't wait for him to be able to start rehabilitation and be able to get up and move around on his own again. I can tell how much he hates sitting around doing nothing all day."

"Well, who wouldn't hate it? Anyways, I best be on my way to my meeting. Call me if you need anything; Novak has my number."

"Alright. Thanks, Roderich."

"No problem. See you later."

Andelko waved a bit as a good bye, and Roderich drove off. Heading inside, Andelko looked around; the place was very roomy. That would help with getting Novak around in his wheelchair.

"This place couldn't have been cheap." Novak commented from the living area.

"I know… but I guess we can't complain. Roderich is just trying to make us as comfortable as possible." Andelko replied, walking over to the man.

"What do you say we head to bed for the night? I know I'm pretty damn tired." Novak said, chuckling a bit. Andelko nodded, smiling.

"Same here, ljubav." The Croatian doctor rolled the man's wheelchair to the bedroom, which was lavishly decorated. He assisted his Serbian boyfriend into bed and helped the man undress, before undressing himself and lying down next to him.

"If there's one thing I really know right now; it's that my ass is sore." Andelko commented. Novak laughed lightly.

"Try being stuck in a wheelchair all day. I'm used to it." He responded, wrapping an arm around the unclothed waist of the other man. Andelko chuckled.

"How have your wounds been feeling, by the way? No pain?"

"Not at all. My leg doesn't even get irritated very often anymore. I really want to get back on my feet… er… foot. You know what I mean." Novak laughed.

"Mhm. And since you're healing well so far, with only one complication in the entire process… I think you deserve a bit of a reward for taking care of yourself so well."

"What do you mean? You've been taking care of me."

"I don't think you realize how much effort you've made to recover, Novak…" Andelko rolled over, looming over the Serbian man, pinning the pianist's calloused hands to the bed with his own equally calloused ones. "Aren't you at all exhausted at the end of the day because you've had to focus so hard on getting better?"

Novak blushed at the tone of Andelko's voice. "U-Uh…"

Andelko chuckled lightly, leaning down and placing his lips against the Serb's, kissing him with passion. Novak returned the embrace, lacing his finger's in Andelko's, gripping the man's hands.

"I think I know where this is going…" He said as their lips separated. Andelko smirked and kissed down the man's neck, stopping to leave a nice hickey on his collarbone. He let go of the man's hands, and ran his own along Novak's torso, feeling the Serbian former soldier's taught muscles beneath scarred skin.

"God, Novak… How you manage to keep in this great of shape astounds me… It's hot…" He murmured, tracing the pianist's abs with a finger.

"Y-Yeah… I…" Novak gasped slightly as Andelko slipped his hand under the waistband of his boxers. "A-Ah, God… Andy…"

ooo

In the morning, Andelko was up and about, cooking breakfast for himself and Novak while the Serb slept off the previous night's "reward". The Croat chuckled a bit; it wasn't something he often did, but he was happy to make Novak moan and groan in pleasure.

As he placed the food he had made onto two plates, his cell phone rang from the pocket of his old jeans. Reaching into his pocket and retrieving the phone, he looked to the caller ID, smiling a bit. Holding the phone up to his ear, he answered.

"Hey Liz."

"_Hey, hey, Andelko. How're you doing?"_

"Great, actually. What about you?"

"_I'm doing pretty good, too. What's got you sounding so cheerful?"_

"Oh, nothing. I'm just glad I've been getting to spend so much time with Novak."

"_Is that so? I think I'll make my own interpretations as to what you really mean, but anyways, how's Vienna?"_

"I've only been here since last night, but it's nice so far. Novak's former boss, who now owns the record company Novak is getting signed to, rented us a pretty damn nice apartment in the city. It's seriously got to be worth more a month than what I've earned my entire life."

"_Wow. So, Andelko, I've got a question. I've wanted to ask you, and I figured now would be an alright time since I've got some downtime at work and you're awake."_

"What do you need to ask?"

"_What would you say if I told you I had a date?"_

"You have a date? With who?"

"_Well… I want you to guess based on a description."_

"Alright. So this is someone I know, correct?"

"_Yes. They're a good friend of yours. They've got brown hair, and green eyes."_

"Brown hair and green eyes… That's a lot of friends of mine."

"_They're about… five foot nine inches tall."_

"Hm… Apostol?"

"_Haha, no. They do work at the hospital though. They've, uh… recently been promoted."_

"Recently promoted… brown hair… green eyes… about five-nine…"

"_Stumped?"_

"No, no, give me a moment… Let me think here…"

Andelko thought for about a minute, but couldn't come up with anything.

"Alright, you've got me. Who the hell is it?"

"_Promise you won't judge?"_

"Liz, I'm a gay Croat with PTSD taking care of a handicapped boyfriend. I'm the last person on this planet who will judge you."

"_Alright, I… I'm going out with Pavla."_

"Wait, what?! You swing that way, Liz?"

"_I guess I do." _Liz laughed a bit. _"But she asked me out last night. I was hesitant to the idea of going out with another woman at first, but the more I think about it, the more open to it I get. And Pavla is just so nice… I couldn't reject her."_

Andelko chuckled. "I have a feeling you two will be great for each other. Though I have to say, you're the first two women at the hospital who will have dated each other. How do you think everyone will react to you two dating?"

"_I don't really know. I mean, for me, I'm bisexual. I still like men, but women, especially Pavla, have always caught my interest. I think Pavla may just like women though."_

"If Pavla turns out to be a lesbian, that would explain so much about her." Andelko laughed.

"Hey Andy! Can I get some help here?" Andelko's attention was caught by Novak calling from the bedroom.

"_Was that Novak I just heard?"_ Liz asked.

"Yeah, he's awake. Give me a call later, Liz. Keep me updated on you and Pavla, alright?"

"_Sure thing. I'll talk to you later, Andy."_

"Talk to you later, Liz." Andelko hung up his phone and set it on the counter, heading to the bedroom. There he saw Novak sitting up at the edge of the bed, the man unclothed and looking tired.

"I need to take a shower." Novak simply said, chuckling.

"Yeah. I took a shower when I got up, and Roderich really did put a lot of thought into the apartment he got. This place was built for people who have handicaps. The shower has a spot where you can sit if you're unable to stand." Andelko explained.

"Really? That's great. Now you won't have to take a shower with me just to make sure I don't hurt myself." Novak laughed a bit.

Andelko assisted the man in getting to the shower, then heading out of the bathroom. He stood just outside it for a moment.

"When you're done just call for me or whatever. I'll be in the kitchen eating." He told the Serbian, before leaving the bedroom. He went to the kitchen where the food he had made resided, and sat at the table, beginning to eat quietly.

Just as he was finishing up, about fifteen minutes later, Novak called for him from the bathroom. Andelko got up from his place and headed back to the bathroom, opening the door just to find the Serb sitting on the floor, half-dressed.

"How the hell did you managed to get yourself dried off and clothed from the waist down without any help, Novak?" He asked.

"Lots of crawling, and upper-body strength. Only thing is, I forgot a shirt, and I don't feel like crawling over to my suitcase to get a shirt. Little help?" Novak smiled up at the Croat, who chuckled and shook his head.

"You're something to behold, Novak… Come here."

Andelko helped the younger man get dressed the rest of the way, then got the handicapped pianist into his wheelchair. He rolled Novak out to the kitchen table, setting a plate of food in front of him.

"I'm assuming you're hungry, ljubav?" He asked.

"You assumed right." Novak replied. "You already eat?"

"Yeah. You know, Roderich has sure done a lot for you and I here. He knew we'd be living here without income for at least a month while you and him worked on your music and whatnot, and he stocked the fridge and freezer with food to last us even longer than the amount of time we'll be here."

"He's always been a generous man. And thoughtful, at that. He grew up poor, you know. He may be rich now, but Christ, he lived on the streets when he was a teenager. That was… thirty years ago, or something like that. Roderich's in his late forties now."

"And look where he is now. It just goes to show, the successful, creative adult is the child who survived."

"Look at yourself, Andy. You survived so much as a kid, and now you're a doctor, end even though you aren't rolling in cash like Roderich, you've got a successful life. For me... I don't know if that saying goes well."

"Perhaps your troubles didn't come as a child, but you've still survived more than your average human being. With the way your music career is going as of right now, you're going to be successful. I just know it."

"But…"

"No buts, Novak. Eat. You need it. I'm sure Roderich's got some things planned for you today."

Novak nodded, starting to eat the food that Andelko had cooked.

Time passed quietly, and before long, Novak received a phone call from Roderich. He put the phone on speaker and set it on the table.

"Hey Roderich."

"_Good morning, Novak. You up and about at all?"_

"Yeah. Took a shower earlier. Just got done eating breakfast."

"_Good, good. Then you're ready to go for the day."_

"What do you have planned?"

"_Just some minor things. We're going to get your contract with the company signed, and then I'm going to show you and Andelko around the recording building, which should be simple enough. Afterwards, we'll have you head home or out to town for lunch or whatever you please. Then you will return to the recording building, and we'll introduce you to a few people who will be helping you along the way with your album, or the music video for Praznina."_

"Alright. Sounds good to me."

"_Alright. I'll swing by the apartment in about a half hour. That alright with you?"_

"Yeah, sure."

"_I will see you soon, Novak."_

"See you soon, Roderich."

Novak pressed the 'end' button on his phone and sighed. "You know, Andy, if you want a break from pushing me around all day, I can do it myself. Turning these wheels by hand isn't too difficult, especially with my upper-body strength." He said, looking to the Croat.

"I enjoy helping you get around, Novak… I get to spend time with you. More than I usually did back when I wasn't your caretaker." Andelko responded, voice soft. Novak smiled at the doctor, reaching and grabbing his hands.

"You think tonight after I get done with all the stuff with Roderich and the record label, we could go out to dinner? I know it doesn't seem like I'm much for German, but having worked for Roderich in the past, I picked up on quite a bit. I'm not fluent, but I know enough to get around, you know?"

"Sure. I think it'd be nice for you and I to just go out to dinner. Just you," Andelko brought one of the man's hands to his lips. "And me."

Novak chuckled, smiling at the Croatian. "I love you, Andelko… More than you know."

"I love you too, Novak." Andelko smiled, then sighed. "You done eating?" He asked, motioning to Novak's plate, which still had a bit of food on it. Novak nodded, and Andelko stood, taking the plate and placing it in the kitchen sink.

"I think you'll like my newer songs, Andy." Novak stated, staring off into the distance, a smile on his face.

"What makes you think that?" Andelko asked, returning over to the kitchen table.

"Well… Some of the songs I've written about my relationship with you… There's a few songs I plan to put on the album that pertain to you… There's one called Doctor… and then there's Surgical Precision…" Novak looked to Andelko. "What do you think?"

"It's all up to you, ljubav… What are some of the lyrics of those two songs you said are about me?"

Novak cleared his throat, then began to sing quietly.

"_Falling apart, we've got nowhere to turn,_

_They say; don't be a hero._

_They say; don't be the one who,_

_Takes all the blame._

_They say; don't be a hero,_

_Don't be the one who is there to save."_

"_Oh Doctor, tell me why I've felt this way,_

_I've got to say, I've never been this confused,_

_My life's upside down, but you're tilting back,_

_Oh Doctor, Doctor, you're tilting back my life."_

Andelko simply smiled at the other man as the Serb stopped singing.

"That was the one called Doctor." Novak said. "There's more to it, of course, but that's really the best part; the chorus. I think I did a good job on it."

"I think so too. What was this other one; Surgical Precision, you said?"

"Oh, right. And, uh, feel free to correct me on anything. I tried to be as medical as possible just to appeal to your side of society." Novak cleared his throat, then began to sing again.

"_Make a midline incision,_

_Make this decision,_

_To take what's inside me,_

_To fill or empty,_

_This cavity."_

"_Make a cardiac arrest,_

_Turn to tachycardia,_

_And make all these symptoms,_

_Disappear..."_

"_With Surgical Precision you've taken my heart,_

_Autopsy this living body's dead inside,_

_Take all these feelings and all of what I do,_

_Take it and make it into…_

_Something new."_

Novak looked to Andelko for comments, and the Croat chuckled slightly.

"To think that you would actually use the word tachycardia in a song amazes me. And you used it correctly, and well at that. Kind of surprises me." Andelko said.

"I like to think I'm full of surprises." Novak chuckled a bit, looking to the front door as the doorbell was rang. "Roderich must be here."

"Yeah…" Andelko sighed slightly, standing and walking to the front door. He opened it, only to be met by a man he had seen once before. It was Lovino, the man whom had assaulted Novak.

"Wh-What are you doing here?" Andelko asked.

"Novak survived." Lovino simply stated. "And that means I have news for you two."

"What do you need to tell us that you came all the way to Vienna just to say?"

"Well, Novak got what he deserved for not paying his debt. His life was nearly taken from him."

"To be technical, he died once mid-procedure, but continue."

"Good to know; boss will be happy about that. But anyways, that 6,500 dollar debt is null now. Void. Doesn't exist. Novak paid that money in blood. I don't want you two to hold any grudges against me for what I did. You have to understand, in my line of work, it's my life or the guy who isn't paying the mafia's life. Call me selfish, but I'd rather keep my life and take someone else's."

"And you're telling me all of this why?"

"Give this to Novak." Lovino pulled an envelope out of his suit coat, and handed it to Andelko. "It's for his eyes and his eyes only. Written from the boss of the mafia he loaned from, delivered by the guy who nearly ended his life."

Andelko took the envelope, raising an eyebrow. "You mafia men are more cryptic than an Egyptian hieroglyph, you know that?"

"It's how we live. Now, I best be going. You two probably won't be seeing me for the rest of your lives, so… Ciao." With that, Lovino turned and left the apartment. Andelko shut the door and walked back over to Novak, handing him the envelope.

As the Serbian tore open the envelope and took the letter that was inside of it out, Andelko scratched at his beard a bit, sighing heavily.

"Okay, so, it's rare that you get me asking this question… What the fuck just happened?"


	13. Chapter 13

"… Hm…" Novak's eyes scanned over the words of the letter that had been given to him, face showing that of interest. Andelko watched the Serb intently, waiting for his boyfriend to respond to his questioning.

When Novak set down the letter and sighed a bit, the Croatian doctor tilted his head slightly.

"What'd it say?" He asked quietly.

"Well… Let me read it aloud for you." Novak picked the letter back up, then began to read it to Andelko.

"Dear Mr. Novkovic… Years ago, when you loaned money from the Vargas Mafia, we expected you to pay it back. In this world, what you took from us is a lot of money. In the Mafia business, every little penny is valued at hundreds of times more than what it really is worth. All the money you owed us after these harrowing six years and never paid back… was worth an attempted murder. Lovino stabbed you numerous times, and made sure that you would be in a wheelchair if you survived. We weren't expecting you to live, but seeing that you survived, you have proven all of us wrong. Novkovic, with the way the Vargas Mafia works; if we fail to kill you the first time, that's the last time we come into contact with you without you willingly wanting our presence in your life.

This is a letter to you to inform you that the Vargas Italian Mafia is now readily on your side. Consider it respect, after six years of hunting you down, and trying to kill you. You survived what we thought would kill you, and for that, we now respect you greatly. We hope that you will contact us in the future as a positive associate. Sincerely, Lodovico Vargas; Head of the Vargas Mafia."

Andelko sat there, a look of utter confusion on his face. "So… They're on your side now?"

Novak nodded. "It makes sense, in a weird way, I guess… Well, at least they won't try to kill me again. That's a bonus. Now, let's throw this letter away, and never talk about the Vargas Mafia again. That part of my life is officially done with."

Andelko chuckled a bit. "A bit quick to try to forget what they did to you, ljubav?"

"Well, there's no use in dwelling on the past. I'm looking to the future now. I've got my sights set on getting my career really going, and spending time with you, Andy."

"You're so sweet, Novak." Andelko said, a smile on his face. Novak grinned, then took the letter and crumpled it up, handing it to the Croat.

"Throw that away for me?"

"Gladly." Andelko stood and went to the trash can, tossing the letter inside it, just as the doorbell rang once again. "That better be Roderich."

The Croat went to the front door and opened it, half expecting Lovino to be standing there again. Instead, he was greeted by Roderich, who smiled at him.

"Good morning, Andelko. How are you?" The polite Austrian asked.

"I'm just fine; how are you?" Andelko answered.

"I'm doing pretty good; I hope you two are ready for what's going to be a long day of socializing and getting to know Novak's workspace."

"I'm probably more ready than Novak is." Andelko chuckled, heading inside. Roderich followed, smiling at Novak when he saw the crippled man.

"Good morning, Novak. I assume you're excited to get started with the new album?"

Novak grinned. "Immensely."

"Well, let's get going. The sooner you get your contract signed, and get to know everyone and your workspace, the better."

The three headed out of the apartment, Andelko pushing Novak in his wheelchair to his Austrian former-boss's lavish Mercedes. He then helped the injured Serbian into the vehicle, putting his wheelchair in the trunk of the car, and getting in the backseat, just as he had the day prior when they had arrived in Vienna.

Sitting in the car as Roderich drove, the Croat stared out the window, watching the scenery pass by with distant chocolate-brown eyes. He couldn't help but wonder if fame would change Novak. He had heard of things like it happening before; celebrities changing and pushing away those whom they once loved and cared for.

He was worried.

Would he lose the Novak he knew and loved, to Novak's own career?

But he supposed he was a fool; Novak was different. He was humble. He wasn't becoming famous for himself… was he?

"Isn't that right, Andelko?" Novak's voice brought the Croatian doctor out of his disordered thoughts.

"Huh? I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention." Andelko muttered, chuckling slightly.

"Well, that's unlike you. I said that you'll support me through all of this, isn't that right?"

Andelko nodded, smiling. "Of course."

"That's good to know that you're supportive of what he wants to do." Roderich said. "Far too often do I have people come in asking to be signed to the label with no support from those who care for them. It ends up pretty sad."

"Understandably so, though. Without any support, there's a lack of motivation to continue, and then the music the person makes turns into something rather hard to enjoy." Novak responded.

"Yes…. Well, here we are. This is the complex that Revolutionary Records owns." Roderich turned into the parking lot of a large complex of buildings. There were three modern-style buildings total, all connected by a triangular courtyard. Two of the buildings were around five stories tall, while the largest and presumably the main one, was only two.

"Three buildings for one company? A bit much, if you ask me." Novak mused.

"Well, you'll learn why we have three buildings here in a moment." Roderich parked the car in a marked parking space in front of one of the five-story buildings, and then stepped out. "This building right in front of us is the corporate building. It houses all the offices and conference rooms for the workers who regulate the record label and manage finances, etcetera, etcetera. It's the boring place where I end up spending most of my time." He explained as Andelko got Novak's wheelchair out of the trunk and assisted Novak into it.

"The two-story building is the recording facility. There's not much on the bottom floor, but the second floor is where all the recording equipment is. Once Novak is ready to record his songs, that's where he'll spend a lot of his time."

"And what about the other taller building?" Novak asked.

"A lot of the bands we sign aren't from Vienna, obviously, so we use that building as housing. They pay a low amount of money to the company to use it, but it's cheaper than staying in a hotel for a month or two while recording. We are currently housing eighteen bands, which each consist of two or more people. The largest group we house is seven people, and they each have their own room."

"Well, that's certainly different." Novak said. "Thoughtful, too. Hotels are hell to stay in. I was playing a show outside of the town I live in, and in just the one night there, not only did I get bit like ten times by bedbugs, but my back and my neck were killing me when I got up the morning I had to play."

"That's a sad reality that musicians and singers have to face when traveling. Especially those who can't afford to stay at a pricy hotel." Roderich sighed. "Now, if you'll come with me into the corporate building, we'll get that contract signed, and get you started."

About three hours passed of signing a contract, meeting people, and getting acquainted with surroundings. Andelko really just stood around with Novak the entire time, being introduced and not really talked to or about much. Of course, he didn't mind.

"Well, everything that has been planned for today is complete, and it's still daylight." Roderich chuckled as he sat in the chair that was behind his large oak desk. "Are there any questions that either of you would like to ask?"

"What are the plans for tomorrow?" Novak questioned.

"Well, now that everything is signed and you know where everything is, tomorrow I would like to discuss with you the content that you want to be on the new album, as well as the name of the album, the overall theme; such things like that. Once it's all decided, I would like to hear what songs you have complete that you would like to record and put on the album. After that, I'll let you do what you want for the day, but in your spare time, try to write any songs that come to mind that could possibly end up on the album. You know where the piano is in the recording facility, correct?"

"Ground floor, down the left hall, first door on the left, right?"

"Yes. But, that's all for tomorrow. Tonight, how about I treat you and Andelko to dinner to celebrate the signing of your contract with Revolutionary Records? I'll invite some other musicians, we'll eat at a nice restaurant; what do you say?"

Novak looked up at Andelko. "What do you want to do, ljubav?" He asked.

"That sounds great to me." Andelko responded, smiling.

"Alright, then. What time would we be leaving?" Novak looked back to Roderich, lips curving upwards in contentment. Roderich glanced to his silver watch, then thought for a moment.

"How about five-thirty? It'll give you two hours to do what you'd like. If you want, I could take you back to your apartment, and then pick you up around that time."

"I actually kind of want to meander around downtown Vienna for a while. Could we meet up here at the recording complex around, say… five-ten, five-fifteen?"

"Sure. I guess I'll see you two then." Roderich smiled at the two, nodded his head.

"Alright. See you, Roderich." Novak said. Andelko nodded a silent farewell to the Austrian man, before wheeling Novak out of the rich man's office and down the hall to the elevator. As the doors opened and Andelko pushed the man in, standing behind him, he sighed a bit.

"You alright, Andy?" Novak asked, reaching back and grabbing a hold of one of the Croat's calloused hands.

"Yeah, just kind of uneasy for whatever reason…" Andelko muttered.

"Is something bothering you?" Novak's voice was full of concern.

"Well, I'm worrying about some stupid things, but it's only natural for me. I'm a worrywart."

"If you're worrying about them, they aren't exactly stupid, Andelko. What's on your mind?"

"I just… Maybe I'm stereotyping people who become famous, but… I'm just kind of afraid that fame will change you for the worse. That fame will make you someone I don't know. Someone that I didn't fall in love with… I'm afraid I'll end up alone when you become famous. That you'll leave me for someone of higher class."

Novak sighed slightly. "It's a valid fear. Fame and money can change people. But, I assure you, Andelko. I'll try my best to not ever change for the worse. If I start to get out of line, and start to act differently than from my usual self, stop me, sit me down, and talk to me about it. I'm sure I'll come around."

"But…"

"No buts, Andy. If I start to change to something worse, you stop me before it gets bad enough as to where I would be so brainwashed that I would ever think of leaving you. You're… You're the love of my life, Andelko, and I can't even imagine why I would ever want to leave you. I mean, you've saved my life, given me purpose… Given me inspiration to continue to pursue my dreams… I love you, Andelko."

"I love you too, Novak." Andelko leaned down and kissed the man's cheek as the doors to the elevator opened and he wheeled the man out. They headed out of the building, going along the sidewalks of downtown Vienna, commenting on things they saw. They stopped at a small plaza with a statue of some war hero, and Andelko noticed a sort of gleam in Novak's eyes and a small smile on the Serb's face.

"What're you thinking, Novak?" He asked. Novak's smile turned into a grin, and the man chuckled slightly.

"This is perfect." He said. "This little monument… This little plaza… This is where I want Praznina to be filmed. It's perfect for it."

"The entire music video here?" Andelko glanced around. "Kind of small if you ask me."

"But that just puts more to the song. It's like focusing on the little things in life; such a small area for the music video of one of my most recognizable songs… Maybe I'm just crazy, but this is where I want it to be."

Andelko smiled slightly. "Well, I guess that's your choice. And you have a creative mind too, so I'm sure it'll be brilliant."

-oo-

Weeks passed of hard work and coming home late at night after recording endless amounts of music. The album, titled _Borderline_, finally, was wrapped up and ready to be sent to stores. Novak had begun to walk on his own, though he was limited to only short amounts of time before he had to rest.

As Andelko walked out of the recording building next to Novak, he sighed contentedly. "So now are you going to go on tour?" He asked.

"I'm going to go on hiatus for a few months… Spend some quality time with you. What do you say you and I head down to Croatia? We could visit that friend of yours; Blago, I think his name was?" Novak answered, smiling, walking down the sidewalk with his hands in his pockets. His pace was slow, but Andelko was happy to walk at a relaxed speed for him.

"We could visit him for a while and then head somewhere nice. I've always wanted to go to the island of Vis, and it's the summer, so it'll be great on the beaches."

"That sounds nice." Novak looked to the Croatian doctor, a sincere grin on his face. "I'd love to be with you for a while without having my career put the least bit ahead of you… We could be like a regular couple, you know?"

"Who needs normalcy?" Andelko asked, chuckling. "Being normal is boring… you and I are different from the rest of the world, in our own ways. You especially. I mean, who can say they've lived through losing a limb, and being stabbed twenty-three times? Who can say that they've created a music career out of the dust of sorrow, and turned it into positivity?"

Novak reached over and grabbed Andelko's hand, stopping. Andelko stopped as well and turned to Novak, raising an eyebrow.

"Something wrong?" He questioned. Novak grinned.

"Screw waiting until we're in Croatia or Serbia. Andelko," Novak reached into his pocket, and then went down on one knee, presenting an open black ring box to the Croat, a gleaming silver ring with a single sparkling diamond in it.

Andelko stood there in shock for a moment, frozen by the proposal. When he regained his ability to speak, he gladly accepted, nodding his head.

"O boze, da! Da, Novak!" He exclaimed. Novak grinned and slipped the ring onto the man's left ring finger. The two embraced each other in a tight embrace, lips pressed together, arms encircled around their bodies. When their lips separated, Andelko reached up to wipe a tear away that dripped down his cheek. Novak chuckled a bit.

"Why're you crying, ljubav?" He asked.

"I'm happy… God, I didn't think this would happen in my life… I never thought I'd ever be in a relationship, let alone be engaged to someone like you…" Andelko pressed his forehead to the other man's, grinning. "I love you, Novak Novkovic."

"I love you too, Andelko Begovich… I love you too."

**Xxxxx**

Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months, and soon, Andelko found himself returning to the United States, and even further, to his own career at the hospital.

As he exited the elevator, heading to the ER, he was greeted almost immediately by a warm hug from Elizibeta.

"You're finally back!" She exclaimed. "Come on, to the staff lounge. We've got something special for you." The Hungarian woman practically dragged the Croat to the staff lounge, smiling all the way. When they entered, Andelko was met with a gathering of all the ER staff members. There was Sadik, Zlatko, Pavla, Apostol, Antonio, and a few others.

"Welcome back, Andelko!" Antonio said, grinning and hugging the Croat.

"Thanks Antonio." Andelko replied. "I feel very welcomed."

"I'm glad. I got everyone here to welcome you back, because ultimately, you're a vital component in the ER's function. You've done us all good, and I've got an offer for you."

Andelko raised an eyebrow, cocking his head to the side slightly.

"What?"

"Well," Antonio started. "I recently received a promotion. I'm going to be the entire hospital's supervisor now, instead of just the ER's. That means, the position of ER supervisor is open. My question is, Andelko, would you be willing to take that position?"

Andelko ruminated on the offer for a few moments before he sighed slightly, smiling.

"I am flattered by the offer, but I have to say no. Reason being, I feel it is best that I stick with my Trauma Team. The ones that I've spent three years working with; Liz, Sadik, Apostol, Zlatko…" Andelko exchanged glances with the fellow ER employees, who smiled at him. "I work to save lives. I work with a team of four others to bring people back from the brink of death. I love my job, even if it drives me crazy sometimes." He chuckled. "I'm staying with my Trauma Team. There has to be someone who deserve is more than me."

Antonio merely smiled, looking over his shoulder to certain Slovene woman, who was standing with Liz, her hand clasped in the other woman's. "I think I have an idea as to who would be a great candidate."

The ER employees hung around the lounge for a while, chatting and taking a break from the hectic jobs they held. Andelko leaned against a wall, looking out a window, smiling to himself. He watched as an ambulance pulled into the ER entrance and clapped his hands loudly.

"We've got an ambulance coming in, sirens blazing; let's get back to work, guys." He said, exiting the room. The others followed, and sure enough, a patient was being wheeled into the ER. A child with severe injuries sustained in a car crash.

Andelko walked into the Trauma Center for what felt like the thousandth time, washing his hands in a sink, then putting on a pair of latex gloves and a mask over his nose and mouth. He was joined by Sadik, Elizibeta, Apostol, and Zlatko, who was wearing a metal brace on his left leg. That was the only evidence of the crash that was left on his body. The Bosnian man had made a remarkably speedy recovery from his injuries, shocking almost all medical professionals around, including himself.

As the patient was wheeled in, Apostol read off a clipboard.

"This is eight year old Samuel Withers. He was the rear passenger in a vehicle in a two-car crash. He was not wearing a seatbelt. He has sustained injuries on his head and torso. He has O positive blood."

"Alright. Andelko, help me remove his shirt so we can get to the wounds. Liz, hook him up to vitals. Apostol, Zlatko, work on the gash in his head." Sadik ordered. The team got to work quickly, and managed to stabilize the young boy, and send him off to recovery.

After they cleaned up, the team exited the room. Elizibeta went to her desk to enter in the patient's information in the system, Apostol and Sadik walked off down the hall chatting something about sutures, and Zlatko approached Andelko, standing by the desks in the ER lobby.

"It's good to know that you're staying with the team, Andelko." The Bosnian said, smiling slightly. Andelko nodded, grinning.

"It feels right for me to be saving lives with the team, you know?"

"Mhm… I see you've got a ring." Zlatko motioned to Andelko's left hand. Andelko's cheeks reddened a bit.

"Yeah… Novak proposed." He said, chuckling and looking at the ring. "I was shocked he did it… I honestly thought I'd be the one to do it, but I guess he beat me to the punch."

"So that means you'll be wearing the dress?" Zlatko joked. Andelko playfully smacked the man's arm.

"Hey now, I'm too manly to wear a dress."

"Did I just hear something about Andelko wearing a dress?" Liz asked from her desk, not even taking her eyes off her computer screen.

"Yes." Zlatko said.

"No!" Andelko defended, laughing. "Novak may have proposed, but neither of us is wearing a dress!"

"Wait, what?!" Liz exclaimed, looking to Andelko in shock. "He did? When, where, how, what, who?"

"Yes, he did. The day he finished up his second album, just outside of Revolutionary Records in Vienna, spontaneously because he didn't want to wait until we were in Croatia or Serbia, he proposed… Novak did. Does that answer your questions?" Andelko smirked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Oh my God, let me see the ring." Liz scooted her wheeled chair over to Andelko, who presented his left hand. Liz beamed with excitement, looking over the ring.

"Have you talked with him about where you want to get married? Or when?"

"Of course… We've agreed on getting our marriage documented in New York since that's the closest place that's legalized it here in the states, but we're going to have an actual ceremony, hopefully, in Vukovar. If that plan doesn't work out, we'll just go to Vis. Probably Komiza. But that's if Vukovar doesn't work out."

"Why do you want it in Vukovar? Not only is that far, but it's also a place where a lot of bad memories reside for you."

"Well, I like to think of it as being a place for a new beginning. I'll put to rest my past, and look towards my future with Novak."

"That seems nice… You two deserve each other. So much has gone on and happened to you too. I think you'll be a great married couple, I mean, come on. You're two damn sexy men who love and care for each other… and do other things. What's better than that?" Liz laughed, and Andelko chuckled, shaking his head a bit at her perverted mind.

"Well, considering Novak and I's relationship, nothing, really. I've never been happier with my life."

"Your parents would be proud that you never let the sorrows of life end yours."

"I've been on that borderline a few times, but I won't fall to negativity. I live in a world where death comes far too quickly for a lot of people. I've learned to respect that one border we really have… I'll stay on my side, and when the time comes, I'll cross over."

Andelko smiled to himself, thinking of all that had gone on in his life to make him who he was. His father's heroic death in the Vukovar Massacre, his escape from Croatia, his mother's death in a factory accident not long after his move to the United States, his quickly-moving college days that he came out as gay in, achieving what he had studied so hard for at such a young age, beginning work at a prestigious hospital and making his name known on a trauma team, meeting a man named Novak Novkovic, welcoming that man into his heart, nearly losing that man to a past mistake, learning of love, hard work, and dedication from that very man, and returning to an everyday life embracing every moment spent alive.

"But for now, I'll just watch the borderline from afar."

_The End._


End file.
